Sony May Keep Jacko From Bankruptcy

    Sony May Step In to Help Jacko
    Monday, December 19, 2005


    Michael Jackson may have an unlikely ally as of tomorrow in the fight for his financial life.


    I am told that Sony Music, his partner in the $1 billion dollar Sony/ATV Music Publishing Company, is offering to step in and help Jackson with his $270 million worth of loans.


    The loans — $200 million of which are secured by Jackson's 50% share in Sony/ATV — were bought in April by Fortress Investments from Bank of America. Jackson is in default and could be foreclosed on as early as tomorrow.


    But sources inside Sony say the company has been in talks with Fortress for some time about clearing up Jackson's financial woes and bringing him current at least on monthly payments.


    "This would be in our best interests," said a Sony insider, who points out that if Fortress forecloses on Jackson, Sony would be farther away from owning his half of the company than they are now.


    Sony insiders also stress that Fortress would be unable simply to foreclose and put Jackson's assets on auction to any buyer. According to the covenants of the Sony agreement with Jackson, whomever has the assets cannot sell them without first offering them to Sony.


    The big question remains: How much does Jackson understand of all this and who exactly is advising him?


    My Sony sources say that Jackson is now totally represented by Sheik Abdullah bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Prince of Bahrain, and his associates.


    According to stateside sources, Jackson has not been in touch with most of his family or with his trusted aide, Evvy Tavasci, in months. Recent visitors to the Bahrainian palace are said to have spoken with the Prince but didn't see or speak to Jackson.


    Even more interesting is that Jackson's brother Jermaine, who got the ball rolling for his brother in Bahrain, is back in Los Angeles for the foreseeable future, perhaps wondering where he and his own family will live if Jackson is forced to sell his parents' home in Encino.


    That leaves Michael alone except for his children and their nanny, Grace Rwamba.


    Jackson and the Prince are still saying to friends that they hope to finance a record company that will be distributed in the U.S. and they also plan on releasing that much discussed charity single someday soon.


    Hurricane Katrina, if you recall, did its damage nearly four months ago. But Dec. 26h is the first anniversary of last year's deadly tsunami in Indonesia. Maybe Jackson can tie it to that instead.



    (fox news)
    --------------------------------------


    :tatort hmm....

    Zitat

    Originally posted by Screamlouder@Montag, 19.12.05 - 8:27Â Uhr
    :rofl Ich glaube dann erhängen sich hier alle Verschwörungstheoretiker weil ihnen nichts mehr einfällt....

    [snapback]40480[/snapback]



    Welche Verschwörung?

    Zitat

    Originally posted by Screamlouder@Montag, 19.12.05 - 9:44Â Uhr
    :D Na die tolle Sony-macht-Michael-fertig-und-will-nur-die-Beatles-Rechte-Verschwörung!

    [snapback]40482[/snapback]



    Naja,es ging Michael ja hauptsächlich um diesen Tony Matulla oder wie der heisst. Alles andere haben die Medien Michael in den Mund gelegt bzw. einige Fans.

    Zitat

    Originally posted by Dennis@Montag, 19.12.05 - 9:47Â Uhr
    Naja,es ging Michael ja hauptsächlich um diesen Tony Matulla oder wie der heisst. Alles andere haben die Medien Michael in den Mund gelegt bzw. einige Fans.

    [snapback]40483[/snapback]



    Jenau. :rolleyes

    Also, da bin jetzt aber mal skeptisch... :tatort

    [CENTER]

    [FONT="Garamond"][SIZE="2"]"If you enter this world knowing you are loved
    and you leave this world knowing the same,
    then everything that happens in between
    can be dealt with." ♥[/SIZE][/FONT][/CENTER]

    Ich sag mal so: WENN Sony das tatsächlich machen sollte, wäre das ein mehr als positives Zeichen! Das würde bedeuten, dass das Interesse im Konzern an MJ noch nicht erloschen ist und das man sich durchaus vorstellen kann auch in Zukunft noch was zusammen auf die Beine zu stellen...wozu sonst sollten die das tun? Zu mal der Motolla-Nachfolger Michael gegenüber nicht vorbelastet ist und der oberste Sony-Boss ein MJ-Freund ist.

    Zitat

    Originally posted by Screamlouder@Montag, 19.12.05 - 10:07Â Uhr
    Ich sag mal so: WENN Sony das tatsächlich machen sollte, wäre das ein mehr als positives Zeichen! Das würde bedeuten, dass das Interesse im Konzern an MJ noch nicht erloschen ist und das man sich durchaus vorstellen kann auch in Zukunft noch was zusammen auf die Beine zu stellen...wozu sonst sollten die das tun? Zu mal der Motolla-Nachfolger Michael gegenüber nicht vorbelastet ist und der oberste Sony-Boss ein MJ-Freund ist.

    [snapback]40486[/snapback]



    So siehts aus!
    WENN Michael nochmal durchstarten wird -also mit alles richtig machen usw :D -,dann ist Mike eine Gewinnquelle. Und Sony ist nunmal auf Gewinn aus.


    Und für Michael besteht ebenso kein Grund,NICHT mit Sony zu arbeiten.


    Als die Neverland-Filzung zeitgleich mit dem BestOf-Release stattfand,hat sich Mike ja beschwert,dass das immer passiert,wenn er was veröffentlicht. Es ist also nicht so,dass Michael ganz am Arsch vorbei geht,was Sony macht. Zusammenarbeit ist also auch nach dem Streit da.

    Also Screamy macht mich leicht optimistisch für den Inhalt und die Folgen des Artikel, hab da nämlich nicht wirklich verstanden, worum es da genau geht.


    Allerdings hoffe ich mal, dass man bei Michael diesbezüglich auch bald ein Management und co aufbaut, die, im Gegensatz zu Michael (so kommt es mir zur Zeit jedenfalls vor), wirklichen Realitätssinn haben, Dinge richtig einschätzen und evtl. Folgen abwägen können.


    Das mit dem Prinzen als 'Ansprechpartner' in diesem Fall ist vielleicht garnicht mal schlecht....Geschäftsmänner sind das ja.

    Mal ein Bericht, der etwas optimistischer in die Zukunft schauen lässt. Mal abwarten, man weiss ja nie. das ein Michael Jackson immer Potenzial hat viele CD's zu verkaufen, sollte jedem klar sein. Er braucht einfach nur die richtigen Leute um sich herum, wie es in seinen besten Zeiten immer war, man kann noch viel Geld mit ihm verdienen. Schön, wenn Sony das auch so sehen sollte...


    Zitat

    Jackson and the Prince are still saying to friends that they hope to finance a record company that will be distributed in the U.S. and they also plan on releasing that much discussed charity single someday soon.


    Na da kann man nur weiter hoffen, dass das noch was wird ...

    Jackson could lose Neverland over £152m debt payment


    WILLIAM TINNING
    December 19 2005



    Michael Jackson could lose his Neverland Ranch and his share of the Beatles song catalogue this week unless he pays some of the money that he owes to a firm of "distressed debt" specialists.


    It has been reported that Fortress Investments, based in New York, will move against the singer's assets tomorrow unless he comes up with repayments to cover a loan worth £152m it acquired from Bank of America last May after he failed to make a $350,000 repayment, the equivalent of nearly £200,000, the previous month.
    A missed payment to Fortress in October prompted a rescheduling of the debt until tomorrow.


    The singer, who has debts of $339m (£191m) could be obliged to sell his 2700-acre Neverland Ranch outside Santa Barbara, California, which includes zoo animals, a funfair, and has annual running costs of $5m.
    He could also lose half of the Sony/ATV Music Publishing catalogue of 300,000 songs – including more than 200 Beatles songs – he acquired in 1985 for $47.5m. It earns him $75m a year.


    Mijac, a publishing company, which owns the rights to his own songs and music by Elvis Presley and others, against which Jackson has borrowed $69m, is also at risk.
    Jackson is understood to have spent much of his time as a guest of the royal family in Bahrain since being cleared last June of all charges, including molesting a teenage cancer survivor at Neverland, following a 14-week trial.


    The verdict exonerated the singer, who insisted he was the victim of mother-and-son con artists and a prosecutor, Tom Sneddon, with a vendetta.
    Jurors also acquitted Jackson of getting 13-year-old Gavin Arvizo drunk and of conspiring to imprison his accuser and the boy's family at his huge estate.


    http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/52776.html

    Jackson, loan holder in pact to bolster his 'financial strength'


    LINDA DEUTSCH


    May 27 2005


    Associated Press


    http://www.mjj2005.com/kopboard/index.php?showtopic=7039&hl=


    SANTA MARIA, Calif. - The investment company which recently took over Michael Jackson's $200 million loan from Bank of America has reached an agreement with the pop star that will give him "greater financial strength and flexibility," according to a statement released Thursday by a Jackson representative.


    In the statement released to The Associated Press by Jackson's spokeswoman, Raymone K. Bain, Jackson and Fortress Investment Group jointly announced the agreement. They did not disclose details.


    Earlier reports suggested that the loan had been sold to the firm by Bank of America without Jackson's participation. Thursday's statement painted a different picture.


    "Michael Jackson and Fortress Investment Group are pleased to have reached an agreement that will provide greater financial strength and flexibility for Mr. Jackson," the statement said.


    "Mr. Jackson is pleased with the new relationship and looks forward to a positive ongoing relationship," it said. "The terms of the agreement will not be disclosed."


    Bain would say only that, "The new loan arrangement is more favorable to Mr. Jackson."


    Responding to reports that Jackson was being forced to sell his fairytale estate, Neverland, she said, "Michael was never in a position to lose Neverland."


    The rambling Santa Barbara County estate with an amusement park and zoo has been estimated to be worth between $50 million and $100 million.


    The statement, which comes in the wake of testimony about Jackson's finances during his child molestation trial, did not address questions about his cash flow and his half ownership with Sony of a music catalogue that includes the rights to works of numerous artists including the Beatles.


    Jackson attorney Thomas Mesereau Jr. asserted recently during the singer's trial that the Sony-ATV catalogue is estimated to be worth more than $1 billion.


    Bain has already said that Jackson does not plan to sell his half share of the catalogue.


    When the loan was transferred by Bank of America early this month, Bain said the new holders did not change any of its original terms but her comments Thursday indicated that the terms have since been renegotiated.


    A forensic accountant testified for the prosecution that Jackson had an "ongoing cash crisis" with not enough money to pay bills. Thursday's statement suggested that crisis may have been resolved.




    June 9, 2005


    http://www.newspress.com/mjacksonupdate/pu...dlendshand.html


    Reverend lends hand with star's finances
    Jesse Jackson says he helped renegotiate loan


    By SCOTT HADLY
    NEWS-PRESS SENIOR WRITER


    The Rev. Jesse Jackson is more than a friend and spiritual adviser to Michael Jackson -- he's one of a team of people trying to save the pop star from financial ruin.


    The Rev. Jackson, who appeared earlier this week in Santa Maria as jurors deliberate in Mr. Jackson's child molestation case, said Wednesday that he helped the entertainer renegotiate the terms of a $270 million loan from Bank of America.


    The bank came close to foreclosing on that loan in April after Mr. Jackson was a day late in making a $3 million quarterly payment, the Rev. Jackson said. The close call only added fuel to speculation that the entertainer's finances were a "time bomb waiting to explode," as was alleged in a civil suit against the star.


    During the trial, prosecutors made much of the pop star's finances, saying that his debts exceeded his assets by several hundred million dollars and that he was spending in excess of $30 million more each year than he was taking in. Mr. Jackson spent like a billionaire with a millionaire's income, said Senior Deputy District Attorney Gordon Auchincloss.


    According to prosecutors, that in part was the motive for a conspiracy. Prosecutors say Mr. Jackson and his advisers were so harmed by the public relations disaster of the TV documentary "Living with Michael Jackson," in which the star says he shared his bed with children, that they conspired to hold his young accuser and his family against their will and manipulate them to make positive statements about Mr. Jackson. His defense attorneys called the conspiracy charge ridiculous.


    Mr. Jackson has pleaded not guilty to all charges.


    The Rev. Jackson said the entertainer's real problem is cash flow, which has been compounded by the court case. Much as Mr. Jackson's defense attorneys have said during the trial, the Rev. Jackson said the singer's financial empire is not on the verge of collapse.


    "You have someone whose assets are two-thirds greater than his debts," the reverend said.


    Mr. Jackson's net worth is much in dispute.


    He owns publishing rights not just to his own songs, but a half share in the Sony/ATV catalog, which consists of thousands of songs, including 251 by the Beatles. Some estimates peg the value of that catalog at about $1 billion.


    In court, his defense attorney, Thomas Mesereau, estimated Mr. Jackson's net worth at $4 billion to $5 billion, adding in the value of his 2,600-acre Neverland Valley Ranch at between $50 million and $100 million. But others believe the entertainer's net worth is a fraction of that.


    John Duross O'Bryan, an expert witness for the prosecution, said Mr. Jackson's debts exceeded his assets by about $285 million. He testified that the debts amounted to about $415 million and the assets amounted to only about $130 million.


    But on Wednesday, the Rev. Jackson gave a much different financial assessment. He said the singer's cash-flow issues stem from the current criminal case, which has prevented him from performing or recording.


    One of the entertainer's problems has simply been the timing of his loan payments, the Rev. Jackson said. He said the rhythm of when he receives royalties does not mesh with when his loan payments are due.


    Earlier this year, the reverend worked on Mr. Jackson's behalf by meeting with Ken Lewis, the CEO of the bank. The Rev. Jackson said that at one point, Bank of America was going to default on the loan after Mr. Jackson was a day late on a payment. His quarterly interest payments on the loans were about $3 million, and Mr. Jackson was $400,000 short in April but came in the next day with the money. But at that point the bank didn't want to accept the late payment.


    The Rev. Jackson said the decision just didn't make sense when one considers Mr. Jackson's assets. He said he didn't believe that officials handling the loan were working in the best interest of Mr. Jackson or the bank.


    "It was really unnecessary for any kind of a foreclosure," the Rev. Jackson said. "But if the foreclosure had taken place, it would have had an impact on Michael's catalog. His whole financial empire would come crumbling down."


    In May, Bank of America sold the loan to Fortress Investment Group, a company that specializes in distressed loans. The Rev. Jackson said the terms of the new loan are much more manageable. At the time of the sale, Mr. Jackson's spokeswoman, Raymone Bain, said the arrangement gave the star much more financial flexibility.


    e-mail: shadly@newspress.com

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