Penske Media, MRC Form Music Data Joint Venture

Penske Media, the company behind publications Billboard, Variety, and Rolling Stone announced a new joint venture with MRC to align their data businesses.

The newly formed company will combine MRC Data, formerly known as Nielsen Music, Alpha Data, formerly known as BuzzAngle, and Variety Business Intelligence, with control and ownership over the combined entity shared by MRC and PMC.

Current MRC Data President Deanna Brown will serve as interim head of the new J.V., overseeing day-to-day operations.

The newly-merged company will provide data solutions across music, film, and television, including music chart data for both the public and business consumers.

The J.V. will also offer a platform that includes analytics tools and dashboards to present data offerings to clients, domestic and global first-party and aggregated data sets, and daily, weekly, monthly analysis and deep dive reports from data scientists.

“As we compete with industry titans who have an arsenal of data at their fingertips, we’re proud our businesses represent the trusted independent source known for delivering comprehensive, timely, and accurate data in entertainment,” said Penske, Satchu and Wiczyk. “Data transparency must be a critical component of our industry and our society’s future, and this new company will leverage our collective data products, people, and expertise to provide solutions for the global entertainment community.”

The new joint venture is effective as of October 23rd, with a transition period through planned through early 2021.