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overview
holdings
landmarks
related
Note:
EMI labels
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landmarks
This chronology is indicative only. It covers -
Context is provided by the broader communications and
media timeline on this site.
antecedents
1889 Columbia Records formed in US
1897 William Barry Owen of US National Gramophone Company
establishes independent recording business in UK as The
Gramophone Company
1898 'Recording Angel' trademark used on record labels
1899 Francis Barraud's 'His Master's Voice' painting bought
by The Gramophone Company
1900 Owen gains manufacturing rights to Lambert typewriter,
company renamed The Gramophone & Typewriter Ltd
1900 'His Master's Voice' registered as trademark in Britain
1903 HMV records first complete opera (Verdi's Ernani)
on 40 single-sided disks
1904 first Nellie Melba records released.
1907 'Typewriter' dropped from name
1909 Nipper, the Gramophone Dog, appears on British 'His
Master's Voice' record labels
1912 factories operating in eight countries, including
England and Russia
1913 estimated one-third of British households own a gramophone
1920 Gramophone Company becomes subsidiary of US Victor
Talking Machine Company
1922 Columbia Phonograph sells UK subsidiary Columbia
Graphophone to Sterling syndicate
1925 electrical recording is introduced, using AT&T's
Western Electric System
1925 Columbia Graphophone buys control of Columbia Phonograph
(former parent) for US$2.5m
1925 buys Carl Lindstrom record group in Germany
1926 Columbia acquires German Odeon and Parlophone record
labels
1929 Gramophone Company opens first overseas factory in
Germany, making 2 million records and 35,000 gramophones
in its first year.
1929 Columbia Gramophone Company buys Pathé-Frères
recording in France
1929 RCA buys Victor Talking
Machine for US$154m
1930 RCA spun off from GE and
Westinghouse
beginnings
1931 Gramophone Company Ltd and Columbia Graphophone Company
Ltd merge as Electric & Musical Industries Ltd (EMI)
1931 Sir Edward Elgar opens the new EMI Studios at Abbey
Road
1936 Jules Thorn floats Thorn Electrical Industries
1938 CBS buys Columbia Records in
US
1952 EMI launches its first 33rpm LP
into US
1955 EMI buys Capitol Records in US
1955 establishes Ardmore & Beechwood as US publishing
arm
1958 Cliff Richard records with EMI
1960 buys Top Rank Records from Rank
group
1960 last 78rpm record on EMI labels is issued
1962 Beatles sign first contract with Parlophone - 'Love
Me Do' released
1962 Top Rank Records closed
1965 EMI forms Music For Pleasure with Paul Hamlyn
1965 World Record Club founded
1966 forms consumer appliance partnership with Associated
Electrical Industries
absorbs ABPC
1968 buys Delfont and Grade's Associated
British Picture Corporation (ABPC)
- Elstree Studio and cinema chain
1969 EMI buys Keith Prowse Music Publishing and Central
Songs
1969 establishes defence electronics arm as EMI Varian
in partnership with US Varian group
1971 Electric & Musical Industries changes name to EMI
Ltd
1972 buys Affiliated Music Group publishing
1972 markets first UK CAT scanner
1973 Gramophone Company changes its name to EMI Records
Ltd
1974 EMI buys Screen Gems and Colgems music publishing
companies
1974 buys Liberty records
1976 EMI Records signs The Sex Pistols
1976 EMI buys British Lion Film Corporation
1979 buys United Artists Records Group
as part of Thorn
1979 Thorn Electrical Industries Ltd buys EMI, becomes
Thorn-EMI
1979 sells Elstree Studio
1981 buys Robert Mellin Music publishing
1985 buys Sydney Bron Music publishing
1985 buys UK chip maker INMOS, sells it a year later
1986 Myson merges with heating division of Thorn-EMI,
creating EU's largest heating manufacturer
1986 sells most film distribution interests
1986 sells film library to Bond
1987 buys Lawrence Wright music publishing
1987 Thorn EMI sells consumer electronics operations
1989 EMI Music buys 50% interest in Chrysalis Records
1989 EMI buys music publishers SBK Entertainment World
for US$295m, adding 250,000 titles to existing catalogue
1989 partnership with Varian dissolved
1989 buys German Intercord group
1990 Murdoch-controlled HarperCollins
sells Hatchards bookshops to Pentos for £10.5m
1990 Thorn-EMI heating operations sold to Blue Circle
conglomerate, lighting business to GE of the US for £69m
1991 Thorn-EMI buys remaining 50% in Chrysalis Records
1991 buys Filmtrax music publishing for £61m
1991 buys further stake in Thames Television, subsequently
sold to Pearson
1992 buys Virgin Music Group for US$960m from Richard
Branson and Fujisankei
1992 buys Sparrow (largest US Christian music company)
1992 buys Denmark's Medley Records
1993 sells Thorn EMI lighting division
1994 buys Food music group
1994 invests in music video channels VIVA in Germany and
Channel [V] in Asia
1995 buys Dillons and Hatchards bookshop chains from Pentos
1995 sells missile unit to French Thomson aerospace group
1996 EMI spun off from Thorn EMI in demerger, becomes
EMI Group plc
EMI Group
1996 buys 50% of Jobete music publishing from Berry Gordy
for US$132m
1996 buys 50% of US Priority Records
1998 buys remaining 50% of Priority
1998 Seagram makes unsuccessful
bid
1998 EMI spins off music and book retailing arms into
HMV Retail (43% owned by EMI, 43% by financier Advent
International)
1999 EMI buys Windswept Music catalogue for US$200m and
Hit & Run publishing
2000 float of Scipher research company spun off from Thorn
EMI with valuation of £330m
2002 HMV floated - EMI stake reduced to 14.5%
2002 EMI buys Mute records for £42m
2002 sells 15.3% stake in VIVA Media to AOL Time
Warner
2003 withdraws offer to Time Warner for acquisition of
Time Warner's recorded music business (later unloaded
as Warner Music)
2003 increases stake in Jobete to 80%
2004 Scipher goes into receivership
out of manufacturing
2004 EMI transfers CD and DVD manufacturing assets in
the Netherlands to MediaMotion
2004 pays US$80m to increase Jobete stake from 80% to
100%
2004 closes CD and DVD manufacturing plant in Illinois
2004 sells Australian CD manufacturing unit (joint venture
with Warner Music) to Summit
Technology Australia
2006 HMV subsidiary Waterstone's pays £62.8m for
independent book chain Ottakar's
2007 EMI agrees to £2.4bn takeover by Terra Firma
private equity firm
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