Tencent Doubles Stake in Universal Music, Home of Billie Eilish and the Beatles

The deal bolsters Tencent’s growing presence in the record industry and exposure to some of the biggest names in music. Universal’s stable also features classic acts like Queen and the Beatles, and it recently bought Bob Dylan’s entire publishing catalog.

The purchase comes nearly a year after the Tencent-led consortium, which includes its streaming company Tencent Music Entertainment Group and other unnamed investors, first bought a 10% stake in Universal. That deal included an option to purchase an additional stake of up to 10% at the same valuation.

Tencent and Vivendi also signed a separate agreement in March that allowed Tencent Music to acquire a minority stake in the Universal subsidiary that owns the record label’s operations in Greater China.

The Chinese company also bought a small stake in Warner Music Group earlier this year Corp.

, home to stars like Cardi B, Ed Sheeran and Lizzo.

For Vivendi, Friday’s deal solidifies a relationship with Tencent that it hopes Universal can further develop its operations in Asia, with the companies working together to increase opportunities for artists.

The sale of the stake will allow the French media conglomerate, which retains an 80% stake in Universal, to further benefit from a reviving music industry.

Owning and selling rights to music has become more valuable in recent years as music streaming revenues on services such as Spotify Technology SA and Apple Inc.’s Apple Music have increased.

Vivendi, whose activities span from television and video game production to marketing, said it could use the proceeds from the deal to pay off debt, buy back shares and finance acquisitions.

It also said it would now seek to sell additional minority stakes in Universal, which it plans to list on the stock exchange by 2022.