It's almost certain they'll blame the Internet. But it'll be hard to
muster any sympathy for Bertelsmann AG when it finally sells its half of
the Sony BMG music venture to its partner. After all, the German media
behemoth has made billions from its online investments. Though neither Bertelsmann nor Sony Corp. will talk, both the FT and Nikkei recently have found leaks, saying the Japanese group will soon pony up as much as $1.5 billion to once again reign alone over its own
label -- albeit one with one less competitor.
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With revenue declining --
for whatever reason -- the venture has become a persistent headache for
Bertelsmann, which prides itself on not having headaches. First, there
was the in-depth review of the venture by the European Union four years
ago. Then there was a 2006 court ruling that said the pesky in-depth review
was faulty. And then there was an application for a new review before yet
another court determined that the review was actually OK. Once out of
the partnership, Bertelsmann can focus on its other activities, and just
download any music it needs from the Internet. - Andrew Bulkeley
