ole Appoints Helen Murphy As New CEO

By FYI Staff

Toronto-based global rights company ole Media Management has announced its co-founder Robert Ott is to be succeeded by entertainment industry veteran Helen Murphy as Chief Executive Officer.

Ott will continue to serve as an advisor to Murphy and the ole Board of Directors.

In May of this year, Ott sold his stake in the company to founding equity partner Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (Ontario Teachers’).  

The company currently operates out of eight offices in the U.S., UK and Canada, and owns a catalogue of more than 55,000 songs and 60,000 hours of film and TV music.  Copyrights under ole’s control include songs recorded by artists such: as the Backstreet Boys, Beyoncé, Blake Shelton, Britney Spears, Carrie Underwood, Eric Church, Jay Z, Justin Timberlake, Kelly Clarkson, Madonna, Michael Jackson, One Direction, Rihanna, Rush, Taylor Swift, and Timbaland.

Murphy is the founder and President of International Media Services, Inc, which provides strategic and financial advisory services to clients in the global media and entertainment industries.

Before founding IMS in 2004, she was Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Warner Music Group.

At Warner Music Group, Murphy was responsible for the finance, human resources, business development, information technology and real estate functions.

In 2012, she was the lead external negotiator for Sony Corporation and Mubadala Development Company to acquire The EMI Music Publishing catalogue for $1 billion and to negotiate a long-term administration deal for the Sony/ATV Catalog with Mubadala.

In making the announcement, Murphy stated: “I am passionate about music and very excited that the music industry has returned to growth around the world. Given the ever-increasing ways people have to consume music, I believe we have an incredible opportunity at ole to continue to create value for our songwriters, our artists and our global production music and intellectual property business partners.”

In turn, Ott said that “It has been a privilege and honour to found ole and grow the company to its present position as a global player. I’ve had the opportunity to work with many incredible people over the years and have learned so much from them. I’m thankful to Ontario Teachers for their belief in a dream and wish Helen Murphy and ole every success in the future.”

Ontario Teachers’ Senior Managing Director, Capital Markets, Gillian Brown said, “We believe that Helen’s track-record, industry knowledge, creative relationships and passion for excellence make her the right person to lead the next phase of ole’s growth and development in this exciting time for the company and for the industry. We thank Robert for the contribution he has made to ole during his tenure. His decision to stay on as an advisor to Helen and the Board will ensure a smooth transition, and we wish him all the best in his future endeavors.”