Bob Dylan was reportedly considering as much as a $400 million offer for his publishing before he agreed to sell it to Universal reportedly for $300 million, a number that is in some question
According to Rolling Stone, "sources with intimate knowledge of the situation claim that while reps for Dylan did have early conversations with Merck Mercuriadis, the founder and CEO of Hipgnosis Songs Fund, Universal was the only company in which a potential deal was discussed in detail."
The publication also reports that "Universal paid closer to $400 million than the $300 million other insiders have estimated. Such a high bid from Hipgnosis means two potential scenarios: Dylan either took less money from Universal for non-financial reasons, or Universal outbid Hipgnosis and Dylan’s payday exceeded $400 million."
Dylan did not speak to Sony, his current label, to gauge any interest from its publishing division, Sony/ATV. Sony/ATV does control Dylan's catalog internationally.
Dylan owns the publishing to "The Weight" by The Band because the music legend owns all the publishing for that group’s debut album, Music From Big Pink. That deal dates back to a deal made in the late '60s between the group, Dylan and their joint manager, Albert Grossman.
[courtesy of Classic Hits Today]