London & New York, May 9, 2013 – Universal Music Group (UMG), the world’s leading music company, today announced that it has completed its agreement to sell EMI Recorded Music’s European rights in NOW That’s What I Call Music! to Sony Music Entertainment. The agreement, which was originally announced on Wednesday, February 27, 2013, was subject to regulatory approval, which has now been granted. UMG retains its pre-existing rights to the highly successful compilation series in Europe and acquires EMI Recorded Music’s rights outside of Europe. This sale follows the approval of UMG’s acquisition of EMI Recorded Music by the European Commission in September 2012.

About Universal Music Group

Universal Music Group is the global music leader, with wholly owned operations in 60 territories. Its businesses also include Universal Music Publishing Group, one of the industry’s premier music publishing operations worldwide.

Universal Music Group’s record labels include A&M/Octone, Angel, Astralwerks, Blue Note, Capitol Records, Decca, Def Jam Recordings, Deutsche Grammophon, Disa, Emarcy, Fonovisa, Geffen Records, Interscope Records, I.R.S., Island Records, Lost Highway Records, Machete Music, Manhattan, MCA Nashville, Mercury Nashville, Mercury Records, Motown Records, Polydor Records, Republic Records, Universal Music Latino, Verve Music Group and Virgin Records, as well as a multitude of record labels owned or distributed by its record company subsidiaries around the world. The Universal Music Group owns the most extensive catalogue of music in the industry, which includes the last 100 years of the world’s most popular artists and their recordings. UMG’s catalogue is marketed through two distinct divisions, Universal Music Enterprises (in the U.S.) and Universal Strategic Marketing (outside the U.S.). Universal Music Group also includes Global Digital Business, its new media and technologies division and Bravado, its merchandising company.

Universal Music Group is a fully owned subsidiary of Vivendi.

About Sony Music Entertainment

Sony Music Entertainment is a global recorded music company with a current roster that includes a broad array of both local artists and international superstars. The company boasts a vast catalog that comprises some of the most important recordings in history. It is home to premier record labels representing music from every genre, including Arista Nashville, Beach Street Records, Bystorm Entertainment, Columbia Nashville, Columbia Records, Day 1, Epic Records, Essential Records, Flicker Records, Kemosabe Records, Legacy Recordings, MASTERWORKS, Polo Grounds, RCA Inspiration, RCA Nashville, RCA Records, Reunion Records, Roc Nation, Sony Classical, Sony Music Latin, Star Time International, Syco Music and Volcano. Sony Music Entertainment is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America.

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