Providence Equity Partners, through the Superstruct Entertainment platform, acquires The Music Republic company and will pay the amount over the next five years
The Music Republic, the production company of the FIB and the Arenal Soundis already part of Superstruct Entertainment, a UK based platform dedicated to live entertainment and organizes more than 70 festivals in Europe and Australia. The purchase operation would have been closed in an approximate amount of €120 millionwhich will be paid over the next five years, as this newspaper has learned.
During this period of time, the brothers David and Too Sánchezresponsible for the production company that organizes the provincial events and which happen to be two of the most important festivals organized in Spain, they will continue to lead the competitions Castellón. Other musical appointments such as Les Arts in Valencia; Granada Sound; Via Rock; Wild Madrid or Interstellar Sevilleas well as a large number of tours and concerts that cover the entire national geography.
Behind Superstruct Entertainment is the US private equity fund Providence Equity Partners, with various offices in cities such as London, New York or Boston, focused on investments in the media, education and information. With significant financial muscle, it would have taken over The Music Republic, as well as Bring the Noise, another production company in this case responsible for other events on the Spanish music scene such as Resurrection Fest, Caudal Fest, O Son do Camio or Festival Sónica, among others.
In 2018, Superstruct Entertainment acquired a significant part of the Snar, the legendary electronic music festival that has been held for decades in Barcelona. Most recently, the platform acquired ID&T, the electronic music event organization giant in the Netherlands, for more than €150 million.
The purchase by Providence Equity Partners of the production company run by these Valencian brothers It represents an important boost for these two great events both provincial and national music scene. Both are fully established in the calendar that each year makes the province one of the provinces that attracts the most attendees to this type of event.
Curiously, Superstruct Entertainment is run by James Barton, a former head of Live Nation, the giant of global music events that in 2019 he already tried to buy the production company of FIB and Arenal Sound.
The Music Republic landed first at Arenal Soundthe popular event that is held on Burriana beach and that every year attracts a very young audience that does not hesitate to run out of subscriptions long in advance. In the summer of 2019, as soon as the edition of that year ended, one of the most poor in its long history, the promoter announced that had also been done with the FIB to try to revive it after the stage that had the British Melvin Benn in the lead since 2014.
new stage
Since then, the FIB has not managed to recover its hegemonic place in the festival scene in Spain. Even though the competition is now much greater that when he managed to lead the sector at the hands of the Morn brothers, the dean of national festivals cannot now face big monsters like the Primavera Sound, BBK Live Bilbao or Mad Cool.
Faced with this situation, The Music Republic opted for a poster low cost, in the style that he already used in the Arenal Sound, and, above all, an aggressive pricing policy to encourage the sale of subscriptions, something that is working despite many fibers now denying the cartel’s low weight compared to past times in which the FIB was a benchmark not only at national but also internationally.
The failed sale to the music giant in 2019
The sale of the promoter The Music Republic to the US fund Providence Equity Partners could have been completed in 2019 although on that occasion the buyer was a different good. The production company Live Nationthe largest in the world in terms of musical shows, is dedicated to organizing live entertainment events and, especially, concerts and music festivals.
Live Nation negotiated for many months to buy The Music Republic. Although the amount was not revealed, some sources spoke of an approximate amount of 80 million euros. Live Nation has two divisions in Spain, one in Madrid and another in Barcelona.
The demands of the brothersDavid and Too Sánchez about thee presiding over one of the Spanish divisions of the multinational ended up breaking off the negotiations despite the enormous interest shown by Live Nation.
At present and according to their data, the multinational, based in Beverly Hills, produces more than 40,000 concerts and more than 100 festivals in countries around the world, among them Spain. The astronomical figures of the American multinational encompass some 93 million attendees at its events and the tours of some 4,000 artists.
In 2010, Live Nation acquired ticketing company Ticketmaster so it went on to become the leading company in the world of live events with an estimated sale of 500 million tickets sold annually.
THE TWO BIG FESTIVALS IN CASTELLN
- IFF. Year after year, the Benicssim International Festival, or simply the FIB as it is known worldwide, brings together thousands of people in Benicssim. The edition of this year 2023 will take place from July 13 to 16 in the festival area of the Benicense town. Vetusta Morla, Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs, Crystal Fighters or Bastille are some of the confirmed artists. The general subscriptions, at a price of less than 50 euros, are almost exhausted.
- Arenal Sound. The popular Burriana beach event will take place this year between 1 and 6 August. In this case, all the subscriptions are sold (the general ones sold out in just two hours). In fact, the organization creates a waiting list and will soon put day tickets on sale.
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A US fund buys the promoter of FIB and Arenal Sound for 120 million euros