Vivendi

About

Universal Music Group is the world leader in music* with global businesses in recorded music, music publishing and merchandising. A pioneer in digital distribution of music, UMG offers the world’s largest digital music catalog through the widest range of products and services. *Source : Music Copyright

Recorded music

World ’s No. 1 in recorded music

UMG is the world’s leader in recorded music* in most of the globes major markets in its sector. It has particularly strong positions in the United States, the UK, France, and Germany. The development of the digital market and new innovative business models has enabled UMG to improve its performance in the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) countries as well as expand its presence into other emerging markets such as the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Thanks to their diversity and their locations, both worldwide and local, UMG’s labels complement each other, through their focus on different genres and music segments.

UMG owns many labels, including pop-music labels such as Island Def Jam Music Group, Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Universal Music Nashville, Mercury Records, Polydor, and Universal Motown Republic Group, and classical music and jazz labels such as Decca, Deutsche Grammophon and Verve.

Catalog releases account for a significant part of UMG’s recorded music each year. UMG’s recorded music catalog, the largest in the world, features some of the greatest American, British, and world artists, including ABBA, Louis Armstrong, Chuck Berry, James Brown, Eric Clapton, Elvis Costello, Dire Straits, Ella Fitzgerald, Serge Gainsbourg, Marvin Gaye, Bebel Gilberto, Johnny Hallyday, The Jackson Five, Elton John, Herbert von Karajan, Bob Marley, Nirvana, Luciano Pavarotti, Edith Piaf, The Police, The Rolling Stones, Michel Sardou, Frank Sinatra, Caetano Veloso, and The Who.

UMG markets its artists’ recordings and promotes them via advertising in the media and at the points of sale. Public appearances and concerts are important elements of its marketing policy. Television advertising also plays an important role in marketing compilations and new albums. UMG is also very active in developing new sources of revenue including expanded rights arrangements, often described as “360° deals”, advertising and sponsorship agreements and participation in theatrical and television production.

The digital music market

UMG plays a leading role in the expansion of the digital music market. The Group encourages and supports innovation. In 2010, it entered into several strategic marketing partnerships with major telecommunications companies in emerging markets such as Reliance in India and Qtel in Qatar, Kuwait and Oman. UMG has also partnered with Vivendi owned GVT in Brazil, which will offer a music service to its customers for the first time. UMG is also a participant in Vevo, a US-based premium video service launched in the United States and Canada in December 2009. Vevo was immediately the number one Music/Entertainment network in the United States. It will be rolled out across the rest of the world commencing in 2011.

Music publishing

World ’s No. 1 in music publishing

UMG‘s publishing subsidiary, Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG), is the world’s leader in music publishing. UMPG owns and acquires rights to musical compositions (as opposed to recordings) and licenses their use. UMG enters into agreements with composers and authors to acquire an interest in the underlying copyrights so that the compositions may be licensed for use in sound recordings, films, videos, commercial, concerts and other public performances.

UMPG is also a global leader in classical music and production music libraries, and controls publishing rights to an impressive list of traditional classical composers including Verdi, Puccini, Ravel, Debussy and Stravinsky.

UMPG’s catalogue includes legendary songs such as Respect, Strangers in the Night and Copacabana. UMPG also represents famous author-composers and performers who rank among the finest of our time, including ABBA, Mariah Carey, Coldplay, Eminem, Jenifer, Justin Timberlake and U2.

During 2010, UMG entered into publishing deals, including agreements with Justin Bieber, The XX, Mumford & Sons, Florence + the Machine, Darius Rucker, Sean Garrett, Desmond Child, Alex da Kid, DreamWorks, Leon Russell and Jamie Foxx. The company also acquired Maranatha and Emack Music / Gotee, two seminal catalogs in the Contemporary Christian music genre.

Merchandising

Bravado, UMG’s merchandising division, is a leading company in this business. Bravado is an artistic merchandising service company that develops and markets its artists’ official products throughout the world. The products are sold during tours, at sales outlets, and via online stores. Bravado operates as a licensing agent for many of its artists for products such as collectibles, footwear and sports gear.

Bravado’s roster of long term clients includes recording artists Green Day, Michael Jackson, Led Zeppelin, Nickelback, Katy Perry, Susan Boyle and Queen, and renowned brands like Harley-Davidson, Sesame Street and WWE. The company continues to leverage UMG’s artist portfolio with clients such as Justin Bieber, Eminem, Elton John, Guns N’ Roses, Kanye West, Lady Gaga, Mariah Carey, Metallica, Rihanna, The Rolling Stones, The Who and Mylène Farmer.

UMG labels

UMG labels include:

Island Def Jam Music Group
Interscope Geffen A&M Records
Universal Mercury Nashville
Mercury Records
Polydor
Universal Motown Republic Group
Decca
Deutsche Grammophon
Verve

In Figures (as of December 31,2010)

• Acatalog of mare than 2 milion titles
• More than 1 in 4 records sold around the world

Management

Lucian Grainge
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Universal Music Group

Zach Horowitz
President & Chief Operating Officer, Universal Music Group

Max Hole
Chief Operating Officer, UMG International

Boyd Muir
Global Chief Financial Officer, Universal Music Group

Pascal Nègre
Chief Executive Officer Universal, Music France