Exclusive: Pop Singer Madonna Intends to Sign a New $120 million Recording and Touring Deal

Pop singer Madonna intends to sign a $120 million recording and touring deal with live entertainment promoter Live Nation Inc. also this deal leave her longtime record label at Warner Music Group Corp.


Madonna is expected to sign a recording deal with entertainment producer Live Nation in this year 2007.

The pop superstar's management informed Warner last week that Madonna would accept Live Nation's offer after the record company refused to match the deal.

Under the terms of the proposed deal, Madonna, would receive a signing bonus of about $18 million and a roughly $17 million advance for each of three albums. A portion of the compensation would involve stock

Madonna could also benefit significantly from the touring component of the deal, which gives Live Nation the exclusive right to promote her tours.

In a bid to compete with the Live Nation offer, Warner pursued a possible partnership with ticket retailer Ticketmaster, a unit of InterActiveCorp, that would have enabled the record company to offer a spectrum of touring services to Madonna.

The proposed 10-year agreement would give Live Nation the rights to sell Madonna merchandise and license her name, and any revenue from such products would be split between the singer and the company, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the deal.

Live Nation also would have to pay $50 million in cash and stock to promote Madonna's tours, according to the Journal, which broke news of the deal on its Web site Wednesday afternoon.

The agreement would be in line with similar deals other artists have struck with labels in recent years that give record companies a stake in their artists beyond the sale of recordings.

Live Nation, which promotes and produces music shows, theatrical performances and other live events worldwide, has been looking to expand beyond its core businesses to offer artists services such as direct merchandising and exclusive ticket sales. Its Artist Nation division sells tickets and artist merchandise online.

Madonna first signed with Warner Music Group subsidiary Warner Bros. Records in 1984. Her last contract with the New York-based company calls for her to deliver one more studio album, expected next year, and a greatest hits record.

The singer has been among Warner Music's best-selling artists for years and arguably remains pop music royalty. Losing the rights to release her new recordings could prove to be a significant blow to the company's bottom line.

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