Hot Records
Background
Hot Records held rights to sound recording copyright and exclusive licence agreements, comprising circa 1,000 musical compositions from well-known artists. Artists within the portfolio included Frank Sinatra, one of the most influential musical artists of the 20th century, Bing Crosby, who released a staggering 396 chart singles and 41 number one hits over the span of his career, and Ella Fitzgerald, winner of 13 Grammy Awards and the first African-American to receive such an accolade. The Company’s repertoire also included a number of classic hits, such as “Over the Rainbow”, a song made famous by its appearance in the Wizard of Oz, “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”, a popular festive composition dating back to the 1930s, and “Baby it’s Cold Outside”, one of the world’s most iconic call-and-response duets.
Engagement and Marketing
In July 2018, Simon Thomas and Arron Kendall of Moorfields Advisory Limited and as the Joint Liquidators of Beyond the Sea Limited (in Liquidation) t/a Hot Records appointed Hilco Streambank to actively seek interested parties with regards to the sale of the rights and associated income owned by Hot Records in relation to circa 1,000 musical compositions. We conducted a comprehensive sales and marketing exercise directed at our bespoke database of buyers of music rights. The opportunity generated a great amount of interest and a number of offers were received for the rights, all from parties introduced by Hilco Streambank.
Outcome
Hilco Streambank closed a deal with an interested party to acquire the rights within 4 weeks of our initial engagement.