LOS ANGELES, July 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Live Nation (NYSE: LYV),
a leading live event and venue management company, announced today that it
has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Musictoday, a world leader in
connecting artists directly to their fans through online fan clubs, artist
e-commerce and fulfillment, VIP packaging and artist fan club and secondary
market ticketing.
Founded in 2000 by Coran Capshaw, Musictoday was born out of the need
to create direct artist-to-fan e-commerce tools for artists he managed. In
a very short time, Musictoday's roster has grown to over 500 clients,
including Dave Matthews Band, the Rolling Stones, John Mayer, Kenny
Chesney, the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, Christina Aguilera, AC/DC
and the Grateful Dead.
Musictoday employs more than 200 personnel and is headquartered in
Charlottesville, Virginia. In 2005, the company's gross sales exceeded $100
million.
"Our mission is to build larger and more passionate communities of fans
around our artist clients," said Mr. Capshaw. "Partnering with Live Nation
will allow us to provide the artist with a full suite of services related
to the live experience. We are now in the unique position to create
opportunities for artist-fan interaction both online through our platforms
and offline at venues, taking fan communities beyond the virtual world to
the places where artists and fans converge. Together we will offer artists
unparalleled marketing reach while championing new and innovative products
for their fans."
"Coran and his team at Musictoday have pioneered a new business that
has empowered artists by enabling them to build direct sales relationships
with the music fan," said Live Nation Chief Executive Officer Michael
Rapino. "As the global leader in concert ticket sales, our investment in
Musictoday will enable us to access additional revenue streams centered
around the live concert experience including artist merchandise web stores,
fan clubs and ticketing. This further adds complementary product lines to
our core live music and venue divisions."
About Live Nation
Live Nation is a leading live event and venue management company
focused on creating superior experiences for artists, performers,
corporations and fans. Live Nation owns, operates and/or has booking rights
for 153 venues worldwide and produced more than 29,500 events in 2005.
Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, Live Nation is listed on the New
York Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol "LYV." For more information
regarding Live Nation and its businesses, please visit the company's
website at http://www.livenation.com.
SOURCE Live Nation
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Related links:
http://www.livenation.com
CONTACT:
John Vlautin of Live Nation, +1-310-867-7127,
johnvlautin@livenation.com
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