Warner Music: brands it owns and its ownership tree
Warner Music (NASDAQ: WMG) is a publicly listed company headquartered in New York, New York, United States that owns 4 consumer brands.[1][2]
Warner Music is the smallest of the three companies that control most recorded music. It was sold out of Time Warner in 2004, bought by Len Blavatnik's Access Industries in 2011, and listed again in 2020 while remaining under his control.
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Company facts
- Legal name
- Warner Music Group Corp.
- Type
- publicly listed company · see all publicly listed company owners
- Headquarters
- 🇺🇸 New York, New York, United States
- Founded
- 1958
- Tickers
- NASDAQ: WMG
- Revenue
- $6.71 billion (2025)[2]
- SEC CIK
- 0001319161
- Website
- www.wmg.com
- Last verified
- · 2 sources
What Warner Music's annual report says about its business
Read from Warner Music's latest annual filing[1]. Each line gives the sentence the filing uses, copied word for word.
Segments the filing names
- Recorded Music:
Revenues, operating income (loss) and Adjusted OIBDA by business segment were as follows (in millions): For the Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2025 vs. 2024 2025 2024 $ Change % Change Recorded Music Revenues $ 5,408 $ 5,223 $ 185 4 %
- Music Publishing:
For our operating segments, Recorded Music and Music Publishing, the Company accounts for a contract when it has legally enforceable rights and obligations and collectability of consideration is probable.
Acquisitions and disposals named in the filing
- Acquired: Chappell & Co. (1987).
In 1987, the purchase of Chappell & Co. created Warner Chappell Music, one of the industry's major music publishing forces with a storied history that today connects Ludwig van Beethoven, George Gershwin, Madonna and Lizzo.
- Acquired: Parlophone Label Group (2013).
The purchase of Parlophone Label Group ("PLG") in 2013 strengthened the Company's presence in core European territories, with recording artists as diverse as Coldplay, David Bowie, David Guetta and Iron Maiden.
- Acquired: Atlantic Records (1967).
The Company began to take shape in 1967 when Warner-Seven Arts, the parent company of Warner Records (formerly known as Warner Bros. Records) acquired Atlantic Records, which discovered artists such as Led Zeppelin and Aretha Franklin.
- Acquired: Warner-Seven Arts (1969); Elektra Records (1970).
In 1969, Kinney National Company acquired Warner-Seven Arts, and in 1970, Kinney Services (which was later spun off into Warner Communications) acquired Elektra Records, which was renowned for artists such as The Doors and Judy Collins.
- Acquired: PLG (2013).
The acquisition of PLG in 2013 significantly strengthened our worldwide roster, global footprint and executive talent, particularly in Europe;
- Acquired: Spinnin' Records (2017).
the acquisition of Spinnin' Records in 2017 added one of the world's leading independent electronic music companies;
- Acquired: Coleske (2021).
For example, in 2021, we acquired one of South Africa's leading independent music labels, Coleske, and music from this influential label's recording artists and songwriters will join our repertoire and receive the support of our wide-ranging global expertise, including distribution and artist services.
- Acquired: Qanawat; Rotana.
In addition, we have increased organic investment in heavily populated emerging markets by, for example, launching Warner Music Middle East, our recorded music affiliate covering multiple markets across the Middle East and North Africa ("MENA") with a total population of approximately 502 million people, by acquiring Qanawat, one of the largest independent distributors in MENA, and by investing in Rotana, one of the leading independent labels in MENA.
- Acquired: Sodatone (2018).
In 2018, we acquired Sodatone, an advanced A&R tool that uses streaming, social and touring data to help track early predictors of success.
- Acquired: Beethoven JV (July 2025), $1.2 billion.
the Beethoven JV, a joint venture launched in July 2025 with Bain Capital to allow for the purchase of up to $1.2 billion of catalogs across both Recorded Music and Music Publishing.
Warner Music in numbers
- Warner Music owns 4 consumer brands tracked here across 1 top-level categories; the largest is media & entertainment with 4 brands.[1]
- 1 of its brands originated outside United States.
Warner Music financial history
Headline figures from Warner Music's annual reports filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, in USD as reported, fiscal years ending 2020–2025. Revenue moved from $4.46bn to $6.71bn, an average of 8.5% a year (calculated).
| Fiscal year ended | Revenue | Operating income | Operating margin | Net income | Total assets | Long-term debt | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $6.71bn | $694m | 10.3% | $365m | $9.83bn | $4.06bn | 10-K | |
| $6.43bn | $823m | 12.8% | $435m | $9.15bn | $4.01bn | 10-K | |
| $6.04bn | $790m | 13.1% | $430m | $8.54bn | $3.96bn | 10-K | |
| $5.92bn | $714m | 12.1% | $551m | $7.83bn | $3.73bn | 10-K | |
| $5.3bn | $609m | 11.5% | $304m | $7.21bn | $3.35bn | 10-K | |
| $4.46bn | $-229,000,000 | -5.1% | $-475,000,000 | $6.41bn | $3.1bn | 10-K |
Source: SEC XBRL company facts. A dash means the company did not report that line in a form we could read. Figures for a year can be restated in a later filing; the latest filing's number is shown.
Everything Warner Music owns
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
Full-screen interactive tree →
Brand portfolio by category
Warner Music SEC filings
The documents behind the figures on this page, as listed in the SEC's EDGAR index. Each links to the filing itself.
Annual reports
- Annual report, filed (10-K)
- Annual report, filed (10-K)
- Annual report, filed (10-K)
- Annual report, filed (10-K)
- Annual report, filed (10-K)
- Annual report, filed (10-K)
Proxy statements
- Proxy statement, filed (DEF 14A)
- Proxy statement, filed (DEF 14A)
- Proxy statement, filed (DEF 14A)
Recent current and quarterly reports
| Filed | Form | What it declares |
|---|---|---|
| 8-K | Entry into a material agreement | |
| 8-K | Departure or appointment of directors or officers | |
| 8-K | Departure or appointment of directors or officers | |
| 10-Q | Quarterly report | |
| 8-K | Results of operations and financial condition; Other events | |
| 8-K | Results of operations and financial condition; Regulation FD disclosure | |
| 8-K | Departure or appointment of directors or officers | |
| 10-Q | Quarterly report | |
| 8-K | Results of operations and financial condition | |
| 8-K | Entry into a material agreement; Creation of a direct financial obligation | |
| 8-K | Results of a shareholder vote | |
| 8-K | Regulation FD disclosure | |
| 10-Q | Quarterly report | |
| 8-K | Results of operations and financial condition |
Frequently asked questions
What brands does Warner Music own?
Warner Music owns 4 consumer brands tracked here, including Atlantic Records, Parlophone, Elektra Records and Warner Records.
Is Warner Music an American company?
Yes. Warner Music is headquartered in New York, New York, United States and was founded in 1958.
Who owns Warner Music?
Warner Music is a publicly listed company owned by its shareholders; it trades as WMG on the NASDAQ.
Sources (2) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
- [1] Warner Music Group Corp. Annual Report on Form 10-K filed 2025-11-20 — SEC EDGAR, SEC Form 10-K, published 20 November 2025; retrieved 16 September 2026.
- [2] Warner Music Group Corp.: Form 10-K for the year ended 2025-09-30 (revenue) — SEC EDGAR, SEC Form 10-K, published 20 November 2025; retrieved 4 October 2026.
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