BERLIN (CelebrityAccess) — Label services company BMG announced its moving into the world of live music with the acquisition of a majority stake in independent German live music promotion company and event agency Undercover GmbH.
According to BMG, Undercover will serve as the nucleus for the establishment of a new live music and event business unit within BMG in Germany that will offer artists an optional integrated tour promotion and ticketing service.
Founded in 1991, Undercover has become one of the most successful indie promoters in Northern Germany, staging about 200 shows a year. Undercover also develops and produces its own formats and brokers tours and festivals for German and international artists throughout the region.
BMG’s Undercover will also dovetail with BMG shareholder Bertelsmann’s other content platforms in Germany, including broadcaster RTL, book publisher Penguin Random House and magazine publisher Gruner + Jahr under the aegis of the Bertelsmann Content Alliance.
“Moving into live is the logical extension of BMG’s plan to integrate all the services an artist could need under one roof, with the artist brand at the center of it all. Crucially, we have found in Michael Schacke and his team a partner who shares our values,” said BMG’s EVP Repertoire & Marketing Continental Europe, Dominique Casimir said.
“I founded this company in 1991 to be able to perform with my band and that’s how I became a promoter. This idea has since grown into a nationwide concert agency with over 30 employees. Discussions about a partnership with BMG commenced long before the coronavirus pandemic, but we are now perfectly set up for when the market returns. There is a significant opportunity for us working together to offer a genuine alternative for artists in Germany and beyond, building on Undercover’s established recipe of ‘live entertainment and artist partnership’,“ added Undercover CEO Michael Schacke.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of October.
