Live Nation take over T in the Park

Live Nation the world's biggest concert promoter have taken over the controlling interest in T in the Park. The American music giant teamed up with Irish millionaire Denis Desmond's Gaiety Investments to control 67 per cent of DF Concerts, who run T in the Park, Hydro Connect, The Edge Festival (new name for T in the Fringe), and King Tut's Wah Wah Hut.

Geoff Ellis, the head of DF Concerts says today in the Scottish newspaper the Daily Record (here) "We are pleased to welcome Live Nation into DF Concerts. We look forward to continuing to work with an array of diverse artists and creating first class events such as T in the Park and Hydro Connect."

T in the Park organisers are assuring festival goers that the take over will not affect them, although it will mean some of the millions of pounds generated by the festival at Balado will end up in American banks.

The upside will be that T in the Park will continue to showcase big name artists, and it's music programming will be strengthened with the takeover. Live Nation will able to utilise its huge power to attract big global artists, many of which the company has already bought up. In the past six months alone Live Nation has captured some of the world's best-known artists to add to its roster, which began with the $120 million signing of Madonna last autumn, then adding U2 and just completing the purchase of Jay-Z for $150 million, as it also makes inroads into the record industry.

Their control of large UK festivals has rapidly grown with Live Nation already owning Download, Wireless and Hard Rock Calling festivals. They have entered into a joint venture with Angel Music Group to run Global Gathering, and they have a controlling stake in Festival Republic (formerly Mean Fiddler) who are involved in the production of Glastonbury Festival, as well as running Reading and Leeds Festivals, and Latitude.

Live Nation also owns and/or manages gig venues, rock arenas and music festival sites around the world and teamed up with Denis Desmond's Gaiety and formed a company called Hamsard buying the Mean Fiddler group for £38m, along with music venues including ten venues in The Academy Group, including Brixton Academy in London. The partnership also won the contract to operate Wembley Arena for 15 years in 2006.

Next year Live Nation takes over control of ticket sales, according to The Independent business news (here), which it currently outsources to Ticketmaster, giving Live Nation another leg-up in their quest for UK music domination. The company will then own artists, their music, booking agents, live venues, tours, festivals and ticket outlets.

Paul Latham the president of Live Nation UK says in the same Scottish article, "Live Nation is delighted to have a promotional and festival presence in Scotland. We are looking forward to working with Geoff Ellis and his team on their many projects."

Denis Desmond adds, "I have been the main investor in this great business for many years. It is a natural progression for me to transfer this investment into my UK joint venture with Live Nation."

Desmond through Gaiety or his other company MCD also own the biggest shareholding in V festival, as well as owning Oxegen two of the few major festivals Live Nation has no controlling interest in, but for how long?

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