Universal Music Group - Definition and Overview

Universal Music Group (UMG) is the largest major label in the record industry, with a 23% market share. They have some of the world's biggest artists including Aerosmith, Eminem, Luciano Pavarotti and U2.

"Universal Music" was originally the music company attached to film studio Universal Pictures; its history is long and complex[1] (http://www.universalmusic.com/history.aspx), but the present organisation was formed when its owners, Seagram, bought PolyGram and merged it with UMG in 1998. Seagram has since sold UMG to Vivendi.

Record labels

UMG owns a large number of record labels, including:

In the United States

• Dreamworks Records (now part of Interscope Geffen A&M)
• Geffen Records
• Interscope Geffen A&M (Previously three separate labels, now managed as one)
• Island Def Jam Music Group
• Lost Highway Records
• MCA Nashville
• Mercury Nashville
• Motown Records
• Universal Classics
• Universal Records
• Universal Music Enterprises
• Universal Music Latino
• Universal South
• Verve Music Group

Internationally

• Classic & Jazz (Germany)
• Decca Music Group
• Def Jam (Germany and UK)
• Deutsche Grammophon Records
• Go East Music (Hong Kong)
• Island Records Group (UK)
• Island/Zeitgeist (Germany)
• Jazz Echo (Germany)
• Jazz Land Records (Norway)
• Mercury (UK)
• Motor (Germany)
• Polydor (Germany and UK)
• Stockholm Records (Sweden)
• UMTV (UK)
• Universal Music Publishing Group
• Urban Records (Germany)

UMG also owns local "Universal" labels in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Spain, Switzerland and Turkey.

See also

• List of who owns what
• List of assets owned by Vivendi
• Vivendi Universal
• List of record labels

External links

• Universal Music Group (http://www.universalmusic.com)