I was perplexed why Walmart was being called a "one-stop." Or is there some music distribution arm of Walmart that we are not aware of????

Jimbo's point about this happening right before the big Beatles reissue campaign was the first thing that came to my mind (followed by "EMI HAS to be deliberately trying to kill the CD format.")

Wow, I jsut started reading this thread now-- really bizarre, how the music industry is going mad as it dies.

What are the other factors?

Citigroup takes ownership of EMI

EMI has been taken over by US bank Citigroup.

The bank had been the major record label's creditor as it racked up debts of £3.4 billion. Now, after taking ownership of the company, the bank has reduced the debt to £1.2 billion, reports BBC News.

Lily Allen, Pete Doherty, Katy Perry, Robbie Williams and Gorillaz are among the artists signed to EMI.

Citigroup plans to sell on the label, which will continue under its current management.

In 2007 EMI was taken over by the Terra Firma company, with Citigroup loaning the money to allow its chairman, Guy Hands, to spearhead the takeover.

Indie bosses and experts react to Citigroup's EMI takeover

Following yesterday's (February 1) news that the Citigroup bank had taken ownership of the EMI record label, indie label bosses and industry experts have been giving their reactions.

The US bank's move means that Guy Hands, who had led a takeover through his Terra Firma investment company in 2007, is no longer helming the label.

Lily Allen, Pete Doherty, Katy Perry, Coldplay, Robbie Williams and Gorillaz are among the artists signed to EMI.

Former Creation Records boss Alan McGee told NME that he thinks the bank will struggle to offload the label, as many believe they are planning.

"The problem with Guy Hands buying EMI was that he bought it in 2007, at the height of the market," he said. "It's like buying a house at the wrong time, obviously you're going to lose money when the market dips."

Hands was a controversial character at EMI. Radiohead left the label during his tenure, with guitarist Ed O'Brien saying that the Terra Firma chiefs didn't "understand the music industry". The Rolling Stones were another high-profile act to leave, departing to sign to Universal in 2008.

McGee added: "EMI is still a great British label, and I actually think Guy Hands didn't do a bad job, he was just personally unfortunate. Shit happens. Their publishing catalogue is still worth a lot of money, but unfortunately these days no fucker wants to buy a record company. And unless the government clamps down on illegal downloading, that's always going to be the case, because downloading has murdered the industry."

However, Peter Quicke, head of the Ninja Tune label, said that the news was not indicative of a wider problem.

"Leveraged buyouts are usually a bad idea, and this was spectacularly bad timing," he said. "Is this symptomatic of wider problems in the industry? No. Digital music has made the industry more profitable. The margins are higher – provided you budget wisely."

He added: "The major label isn’t broken. In fact, Universal and Sony are thriving. This is just a case of EMI handling the last ten years of recession badly."

Ben Cardew, news editor of MusicWeek, said that the takeover could be good for EMI in the long run.

"This actually could be a good thing for EMI since it now has less debt," he said. "Terra Firma weren't popular with artists. They'll be relived that they're gone."

He added: "People are speculating that the company will be broken up by Citigroup, but I think that's unlikely. The way that the publishing wing and the record company part are structured – that's EMI's strength, it doesn't make sense to break it up.

"EMI will come through this. It's been doing well, they're still breaking artists like Tinie Tempah. And the publishing arm still does really well."

Music industry analyst Bob Lefsetz was less optimistic, saying that the takeover could leave new acts stranded.

"The only thing shocking about this is the timing," he said. "Everybody thought it was inevitable. You can expect Warner to buy EMI and then sell [music publishing company] Warner-Chappel to [rights management company] BMG Rights."

He added: "Where does this leave artists? Anybody who makes a deal with EMI right now is an idiot. Established artists like Coldplay and Katy Perry are OK, but if you're developing, you're screwed."

Citigroup set to put struggling EMI up for sale

US bank Citigroup looks set to put struggling record label EMI up for sale.

The bank took control of EMI in February this year after it called in the label's debt of over £3.4 billion.

The label had previously been owned by the Terra Firma company, with Citigroup loaning the money to allow its chairman, Guy Hands, to spearhead the takeover. However, Terra Firma could not get the label out of the red and the bank assumed control as a result.

According to Sky News, Citigroup has now announced that it has "initiated a process to explore and evaluate potential strategic alternatives, including a possible sale, recapitalisation or initial public offering for the company."

Pink Floyd, Pete Doherty, Katy Perry, Robbie Williams and Gorillaz are amongst the artists signed to EMI.

Universal set to become first bidders for EMI

Universal Music Group is expected to be an early bidder for the EMI group, according to sources.

Yesterday it was announced that US bank Citigroup, who took control of the label in March this year are set to put the label up for sale, opening up a bidding process likely to take months.

Now Universal, the largest of the four major record companies, will be the first to throw its hat into the ring, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Universal decided not to chase the acquisition of Warner Music Group when it was put up for auction earlier this year, primarily because a merger of the two companies would have struggled to meet monopoly legislation, since both companies have double digit market share in both Europe and the US.

But it is believed that a mash up of Universal and EMI would be an easier sell to regulators, since according to the most recent figures, EMI's market share was just under 9%.

For Warners' part, they are expected to launch a bid once their own sale has gone through. They were bought earlier this year by oligarch Len Blavatnik for $3.3 billion.

So soon we'll have what, two major international conglomerate music corporations...?

David Bowie 'set to follow Robbie Williams by leaving EMI'

David Bowie is on the verge of leaving his record label EMI, according to reports.

The Financial Times claims that the legendary singer is poised to end his 15-year association with the label, which saw Robbie Williams walk away last month. The former Take That man, who had spent his entire solo career with the firm, reportedly left over disagreements with the way the label was being run.

Universal Music and Sony Music are apparently in talks to sign Bowie when the deal with EMI ends in January. EMI declined to comment to the newspaper over the claims.

Whether Bowie will release any new music – or even play live again – is another matter however. Earlier this year, the Thin White Duke's biographer Paul Trynka said it would take a "miracle" for Bowie to return.

Bowie has not released a new album since 2003's 'Reality' and not played live since 2006, when he sang onstage with Alicia Keys in New York City. He has given no indication he is likely to tour again.