The move is confirmed in a memo sent by Sony Corp. CEO Kenichiro Yoshida.
In one of those “everybody’s saying it but it’s not quite officially official yet” situations, when news gradually broke last week that Warner/Chappell Music Publishing chief Jon Platt was leaving that company to take over for Martin Bandier at Sony/ATV, the corporate-legalese sidestep was so elaborate that in some instances Platt was only being referred to as “the successor.”
Well, the hurdles must have been cleared, because a memo from Sony Corp. CEO Kenichiro Yoshida obtained by Variety on Tuesday begins: “Dear Colleagues, I am pleased to inform you that Jon Platt will be taking the helm of Sony/ATV, reporting to me, when Marty Bandier leaves at the end of his contract in March, 2019.”
Yoshida goes on to praise Bandier for his 11 years of leadership, in which he “has steered the company to unprecedented success,” the memo reads. “I speak on behalf of Sony when I say what an honor it has been to have had the opportunity to work with someone as talented as Marty. His business acumen is admired across the music industry and his charming personality is loved by both artists and colleagues. It has been my pleasure to watch him lead Sony/ATV to new heights, and I want to personally thank him for his commitment and leadership here at Sony. As part of my management team, Marty will continue his expert guidance of Sony/ATV through the end of the current fiscal year.”
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He also praises the incoming Platt, who worked under Bandier for many of his 17 years at EMI Music Publishing before moving to Warner/Chappell in 2011. “At Warner/Chappell, Jon has attracted a wide range of new and established creative talent, while building a dynamic senior management team around the world. Under his leadership, Warner/Chappell broke records in Billboard’s quarterly market shares and the company was regularly named Publisher of the Year in the various BMI and ASCAP annual award ceremonies.”
Ironically, the record-breaking feat Yoshida refers to is topping Billboard’s Publisher’s Quarterly chart in the third quarter of 2017 — the first time in five years that Sony/ATV didn’t top the chart.