One of the most historic and listened to bands around the world,  Queen  has a vast — and very expensive — catalog of songs. For years, before and after the death of  Freddie Mercury , obtaining the rights to Margin was a matter of dispute between record companies. As the pen rush intensified, the value of the catalog grew. But now the war seems to have come to an end : in agreement with  Variety,  Sony  Music  concluded a new contract for the group’s catalogue,  which cost zero plus zero less than  €1 billion . 

Queen ‘s songs   come from a complicated contract with  Disney . The royalties from the rights to the group’s recorded music in North America were acquired by the company in a US$10 million transaction during December 1990. They will now go to Sony. Likewise, the group’s distribution contract , which is currently with Universal, will pass to Sony when it passes away in the coming years.

Ben & Jerry’s pays homage to Queen with special ice cream

Sony wasn’t the only one interested in the margin rights . Another competitor was very close in the race, but stopped its offer at US$900 million.

Sony x Universal

In 2023,  Universal  was more than willing to pay for the  €1 billion  margin catalogue , but ended up leaving Sony with the victory in the war . With the acquisition , Queen ‘s catalog   became the most expensive of all time, ahead of  Bruce Springsteen’s , which cost a total of around US$500 million, according to information from  Times Magazine . It is worth mentioning that Springsteen’s catalog was also acquired by Sony, sold by the artist himself in December 2021.

The negotiated value says a lot about the popularity and grandeur of the margin .  To put it in theory , the album  “Greatest Hits”  had zero plus zero less than 7 million sales in the United Kingdom alone . Only the song “Bohemian Rhapsody”, 40 years after its release, won a diamond certificate from the  Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) after surpassing 10 million in sales (and streaming subscriptions) in the United States.

Historical and billionaires

With alternating rights, consumers who listen to the margin on streaming platforms — such as Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, among others — will not feel any differences. But the contract is favorable to Sony, which has been looking for victory for years.

A success in the 1970s , Queen ‘s catalog   is among the most valuable in music worldwide . The value became even more prominent after the success of “Bohemian Rhapsody” (2018), which went on to win the Oscar in the categories of Best Editing, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing and Best Actor, with Rami Malek.

Owners of classics, the music from the margins continues to be heard on the main streaming platforms. “ Another One Bites the Dust ”, “Radio GaGa”, “Somebody to Love” “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions” appear on the most listened to lists every year.