Warner Music Group is set to work with Netflix to create a slate of movies and documentaries based on the major’s artists and songs, according to a report from Bloomberg.
The Netflix partnership would represent a new audiovisual strategy for Warner Music, which closed a films and TV division earlier this year as part of cost-cutting measures. Bloomberg reported that the company is now looking to outsource that work.
Robert Kyncl, CEO at Warner Music, declined to comment on any specific deal during his appearance at the Bloomberg Screentime conference in Los Angeles on Wednesday (October 8), but he did refer to the concept of such a partnership.
Warner Music has a “tremendous catalogue” of rights to songs from legendary artists, including Madonna, Fleetwood Mac and Prince, Kyncl told the audience
“The stories we have are incredible, and they haven’t been told,” Kyncl said. “It makes a lot of sense for us to partner with a company that can bring it alive all around the world.”
Music movies and documentaries have often delivered a catalogue boost for artists. The Bruce Springsteen biopic Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere, and accompanying album Nebraska ’82: Expanded Edition, is released later this month via Sony Music.
In the summer, Warner Music outlined plans for a further $300 million in cost savings, while also partnering with Bain Capital to invest up to $1.2 billion in music catalogues.
