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BMI announces redundancies after calling off sale
By Andy Malt | Published on Tuesday 23 August 2022
US song rights collecting society BMI has announced plans to make almost 10% of its workforce redundant, less than two weeks after announcing that it had abandoned plans to sell itself off.
“I’m writing to let you know about some difficult actions we took today”, wrote CEO Mike O’Neill in a recent memo to staff obtained by Billboard. “After a careful and comprehensive review process, we are reducing BMI’s total workforce by just under 10% through a combination of headcount reduction and not filling a number of current open positions. This impacted most departments and is effective immediately”.
The cuts see around 30 people lose their jobs, including at least two senior executives – with SVP Creative Alex Flores and SVP International Ann Sweeney reportedly on their way out.
O’Neill’s update arrived just days after BMI announced that it was no longer seeking a buyer for the organisation, saying that such a sale “is no longer an avenue we are considering”. It had been seeking at least $1.5 billion, and as much as $3 billion, according to Bloomberg.
In a statement earlier this month announcing that it was off the market, the society said: “We’ve been clear from the start that as we explored strategic opportunities for BMI, we were going to evaluate all options that would support our affiliates and grow the value of their music”.
With the streaming boom continuing – and a portion of that digital income flowing through the performing rights organisations in the US – BMI previously announced that it had brought in its highest ever revenues in 2021, with over $1.4 billion.
Acknowledging this in his message to staff, O’Neill said: “I appreciate that you may wonder why, when we regularly highlight how we continue to outperform the competition, this year included, we need to take these difficult steps. It’s a fair question, but our success does not mean that we shouldn’t also take a critical look at our business and ensure we are operating in the most efficient and effective way possible, particularly as we head into uncertain economic times”.
It is possible that those “uncertain economic times” are also to blame for the organisation withdrawing itself from sale. It follows a number of recent decisions by other music industry companies not to sell up, with Concord having pulled itself off the market, and companies like Round Hill and Tempo Music exploring but ultimately not going ahead with a sale. Rising interest rates are thought to be a major reason for bidders not being keen to offer the amounts of money these companies have been seeking.
Still, O’Neill also said that, despite the timing, the redundancies were something that BMI had been considering for some time, explaining: “We learned some important lessons during the pandemic about how we could operate more effectively. Unlike many other companies, we made a concerted effort to maintain headcount as COVID took hold, the right decision for us at that time. As we emerged from the pandemic, it became clear that there were areas in our workforce that needed adjustment”.
