Syco Entertainment joint venture earns The X Factor mogul �26,754,967, according to documents at Companies House
Simon Cowell made �27m as part of the deal to create a new entertainment joint venture with Sony Music, according to documents filed at Companies House.
Syco Entertainment was formed in 2010 out of a deal that saw the music mogul win back a share of formats such as The X Factor and ? Got Talent from Sony, having been forced to hand the rights to the record label over in 2005 after Simon Fuller, the tycoon behind Pop Idol, brought a copyright infringement claim.
For his 50% stake in Syco, Cowell contributed his company Maidmetal. In return, the music mogul was paid �26,754,967, according to Syco's first annual accounts, for the 12 months up to 31 March this year. Sony part paid for its 50% stake in the company with �31,125,033 in cash.
The record company also handed over Simco, the production company behind The X Factor that Cowell sold in 2005, and another former Cowell company, Ronagold, which was initially founded as the home of Pop Idol stars Gareth Gates and Will Young.
Syco's accounts provide the first insight into the structure of the relationship between Cowell and Sony. The joint venture is described as a non-trading holding company, with four trading subsidiaries, each focusing on different areas of the entertainment industry.
Simco is the television subsidiary of the business, with its activities described as "TV programme format creation and production". Maidmetal is the publishing arm, focusing on "music publishing, developing talent and intellectual property in the entertainment industry". Ronagold is described as providing "record production and promotion", while a fourth company, Syco Touring, as its name suggests, runs The X Factor and Britain's Got Talent artists' tours.
Simco, which produces Cowell's programmes, including gameshow Red or Black?, recorded revenues of �28m in the year to 31 March, according to newly filed accounts.
The figure is down on the �33m turnover Simco recorded over the same period in 2010, but meaningful comparisons are difficult because during that year the company changed its reporting date, as well writing off nearly �56m that had been due from Sony.
Simco's 2011 accounts show the company made pre-tax profits of �13.7m on its �28m turnover. The accounts cover the period before The X Factor launched in the US, and record that only 11% of turnover, or �3.2m, came from the country. But the company noted that Fox has commissioned a second season of the show, adding: "This expansion offers a major opportunity for the future growth of the company."
The number of staff employed by Simco nearly doubled, from eight to 15, as a result of "future expansion plans". Over the 12 months the company employed an average of 13 employees, costing �6,712,761 ? or an average of just more than �500,000 per staff member.
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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/dec/23/simon-cowell-sony-music-deal
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