What will be the impact of yesterday's court decision that said Sony BMG's merger should not have been given regulatory approval? Depends on who you ask. Read the papers today and you'll get all kinds of opinions.

Quoted by Bloomberg News, an analyst at SG securities said, "It appears to pour a bucket of ice water over the hopes of an EMI-Warner merger, and that's what's been supporting the shares." The Times Online presented a dour outlook for both Sony BMG and a proposed merger of EMI and Warner Music Group, writing that "Investors concluded that a Warner-EMI deal would be harder." A Times Online commentary by Robert Cole said it doesn't necessarily spell doom for either Sony BMG or EMI/WMG, but it "will inevitably lead to hesitation."

Investors obviously feel the doubt. Stocks for EMI and Warner Music Group plunged yesterday.

But not everybody is down -- at least publicly. EMI is staying positive. EMI chairman Eric Nicoli said EMI wouldn't be going after WMG if it didn't think it would get regulatory approval. Sony BMG officials don't think they will lose regulatory approval after the case is revisited by the EU. "Today's judgment does not affect the validity of the Sony BMG joint venture, which has been up and running since August 2004," said the company.

A NY Times article quotes a competition lawyer in Brussels as saying this whole thing "is probably just an inconvenience for the companies" and the merger is not likely to be blocked.

[music jobs] Director of Content at Dada Entertainment; New York, NY.