Given current market shares, an acquisition of EMI’s recorded music division by either Universal Music Group or Sony Music seems less likely to gain regulators’ approval. Through Oct. 31, according to Nielsen SoundScan, EMI had a 9.6% share of track equivalent albums (a mix of albums and individual tracks). UMG and Sony have a 31% and 26.9% share of U.S. track equivalent albums, respectively. A tie-up with Warner Music Group, which had a 20.3% share, would be more palatable because the resulting company would have only a 29.9% share.
