SYDNEY, NSW (CelebrityAccess) — Mushroom Group CEO Michael Gudinski has denied reports that he is planning to sell Mushroom Group to AEG Presents.
“Be assured that rumors that I’m selling Mushroom Group are absolutely incorrect,” he told Australian music news service The Music Network. “And the fact that anyone thinks I would sell Mushroom Group has me thinking I should book the rumourmongers for a Frontier Comedy tour because it’s so laughable.”
AEG has reportedly been eyeing Gudinski’s Mushroom Group for months as a potential avenue of international expansion and last week, the industry blog Hits Daily Double reported that AEG had made a $75m bid for the entertainment company.
Mushroom Group, one of Australia and New Zealand’s most powerful entertainment brands, includes live entertainment companies Frontier Touring, Frontier Comedy, Mushroom Events, Good Life Presents, Illusive Presents and Roundhouse among others.
While an outright sale may be out of the picture, Gudinski’s comments don’t exclude other potential deals, including an expansion of AEG’s existing touring and festival relationship with Frontier.
Gudinski founded Mushroom Records and Mushroom Music in 1972 and oversaw their expansion into one of Australia’s leading record labels and live entertainment companies. In 2005, Gudinski sold a 51% stake in Mushroom Records to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp but re-acquired full control of the label in 2010.
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