EMI's Next

AND NOW EMI'S UP: While it’s unclear whether Big Four top dogs Sony Music and UMG will enter the bidding on EMI, most believe they’d much prefer the status quo rather than having to deal with a combined Warner Music-EMI in what would then be a Big Three. So, too, would Roger Faxon, who is said to be courting financial players to buy EMI from Citi, apparently determined to pull off the same sort of coup Edgar Bronfman did. Will he find a buyer willing to pay more than Bronfman/Blavatnik? Citi might even be motivated to accept a lesser bid from a financial player, rather than face the uncertainty of intensive regulatory scrutiny, which could conceivably overturn any deal with a strategic entity. (6/2p)