On this week’s show we discuss the bidding war compounding the latest in a long line of dramas at Hipgnosis, the faltering start for Manchester’s new Co-op Live arena and more.
SECTION TIMES
01: Hipgnosis (00:04:59)
02: News in brief (00:18:48)
03: Co-op Live (00:12:15)
(Timings may be slightly different due to adverts)
THIS WEEK’S MAIN STORIES
Concord Music makes offer to buy SONG music rights fund
Just like your favourite soap opera coming to an end, shed a tear as Hipgnosis v Hipgnosis packs its trunk and says goodbye to the circus, drawing the months-long drama to a close. But wait! There might be a twist
Blackstone proposes $1.24 per share for SONG, threatens call option
The elephants are on parade again… Blackstone gets heavy with SONG board and goes public with a potential $1.24 offer for beleaguered song rights fund – 7% higher than Concord’s offer on Thursday
Hipgnosis Songs Fund takeover battle – what might happen next?
Have you ever dropped something – an entire bowl of trifle, for example – only to catch it before it hits the floor, your split second reactions kicking in as though time had slowed down? When time turns to treacle, normal things can lose all meaning. Welcome to the state of Hipgnosis.
Alchemy-backed Concord ups SONG bid edging out Blackstone
Luccia Di Lammermoor opened in Covent Garden last week. If you didn’t get tickets don’t worry: there’s a piece of opera every bit as dramatic – and as likely to end in a bloodbath – playing out as Concord and Blackstone look set to fight to the bitter end in the Hipgnosis Songs Fund takeover race
Co-op Live GM says grassroots venues are “poorly run”, before cancelling thousands of tickets to test event at the very last minute
Manchester’s big new arena venue, Oak View’s Co-op Live, is due to officially open tomorrow. However, technical problems forced the venue to significantly cut the capacity for a test event on Saturday, which led to lots of angry concert-goers venting on social media
Manchester’s new Co-op Live arena cancels launch shows as power issues delay opening
The opening shows at Manchester’s new Co-op Live venue have been postponed after technical problems resulted in thousands of tickets for a test event this weekend being cancelled at the last minute
NEWS IN BRIEF
The clock is now TikTokking as US Senate votes through sell-or-be-banned law
The law ordering ByteDance to sell TikTok or see the app banned in the US has been passed by both chambers of Congress. TikTok will now begin work trying to get the law overturned in the courts, while Donald Trump tries to use his opposition to it to connect with younger voters
Amazon AI employee claims she was told to breach copyright rules because “everyone else is doing it”
An AI researcher who worked for Amazon is suing the company over allegations of harassment and unlawful dismissal – and in her lawsuit she claims that she was told it was fine to breach copyright rules when developing AI models in order to keep up with competitors
Moving BBC radio to an ad-funded model would be a disaster, says Radiocentre
As the UK government reviews the future of BBC funding – and following the news that the BBC will start selling ads alongside its podcasts on third party platforms – Radiocentre has investigated what would happen if all of the BBC’s radio services were paid for by advertising
Drake threatened with legal action over AI Tupac in Kendrick diss track
The Tupac estate has hit out at Drake over a Kendrick Lamar diss track that includes a verse delivered by an AI-generated Tupac vocal clone. Drake has been told to pull down the track or the estate will “pursue all of its legal remedies”
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