BMG has signed an agreement with Netflix to exclusively manage and administer the streaming giant’s music-publishing rights outside the U.S.
In the U.S., Netflix handles music licensing in-house. The agreement with BMG for international territories includes score, transition cues, themes and feature songs for all content owned by Netflix for its original productions, including TV series like “Stranger Things” and Chelsea Handler’s talk show; feature films like Adam Sandler’s “Ridiculous 6”; and documentary features.
“After a long process of selecting the right partner for Netflix, we are delighted to be able to announce this new partnership with BMG and look forward to getting started with the team there,” Dominic Houston, Netflix’s director of music licensing, said in a statement. He added that Netflix was “particularly impressed by the commercial and technology expertise of BMG.”
Zach Katz, BMG’s president of U.S. repertoire and marketing, praised Netflix as “one of the most forward-thinking and innovative entertainment companies in the world,” calling out the BMG film and TV publishing team led by U.S. deputy general counsel Keith Hauprich in landing the pact.
As of the end of 2016, Netflix had 93.8 million streaming subscribers in about 190 countries, including 44.4 million outside the U.S. Members stream, in aggregate, more than 125 million hours of TV shows, movies and other content daily.
BMG’s other current film and TV partners include the Weinstein Co., Hasbro Studios, Activision Blizzard Studios, AMC Networks, Turner Broadcasting and NFL Films. The company is a division of German media conglomerate Bertelsmann.
