Image Credit: Faye Thomas
Here’s the thing: when most people think about music rights as an investment, they picture pop stars, hit singles and chart-topping albums. But a London‑based company quietly carved out a wholly different niche one that’s now worth more than $1 billion. Cutting Edge Group has made itself indispensable in an area of ever‑growing commercial importance: music rights for film, television and video games.
With a strategy built on long horizons, deep industry relationships, and a conviction that media music rights were misunderstood by investors, the company has amassed a catalogue that reads like a history of Hollywood. And with institutional capital now entering the space, Cutting Edge’s approach could reshape how music IP is valued and monetized.
The Untapped Gold in Film and TV Music
For nearly two decades, Cutting Edge has focused not on pop hits, but on the music that underscores our favourite stories. From Stranger Things and The Walking Dead to Yellowstone and Bridgerton, the company owns or manages publishing and soundtrack rights that generate royalties every time these shows are streamed, broadcast or licensed.
Philip Moross, the company’s founder and CEO, told Music Business Worldwide that when he launched Cutting Edge in 2006, the music business was “focused on commercial music.” Film and television music, he said, was treated as a “poor relation” largely ignored by serious investors despite its long‑term copyright value.
That overlooking is part of what created the opportunity. Unlike pop catalogues, which are often tied to fleeting trends, media music rights come with decades of predictable royalty income and limited reversion risk. Every stream of an episode of Friends or a viewing of a blockbuster film generates performance royalties tied to the underlying music.
The Transformative Deal That Changed Perceptions
The company’s rise from niche player to institutional partner came with its headline‑grabbing joint venture with Warner Bros. Discovery. In late 2025, Cutting Edge and WBD agreed to co‑own and co‑manage a music catalogue that spans almost 100 years of compositions from iconic films and TV franchises including Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, DC movies, Game of Thrones and Friends.
This wasn’t just about acquiring rights it was a validation of media music as a serious asset class. David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, has publicly framed the transaction as a way for the company to unlock value from its back catalogue while retaining creative oversight.
For Cutting Edge, the deal signaled to the broader entertainment industry that it could compete at the highest levels and deliver on large‑scale institutional opportunities and fundamentally changed its pipeline of prospects.
Strategic Acquisitions: From AMC to John Paesano
Cutting Edge didn’t build its portfolio overnight. It has completed roughly 30 acquisitions in the past four years alone, often working off‑market through direct relationships with composers and production companies. These include the full TV music rights catalogue from AMC Studios home to The Walking Dead and Anne Rice’s Immortal Universe and the catalog of award‑winning composer John Paesano, whose scores include the Maze Runner trilogy, Marvel’s Daredevil series and AAA video games.
“These works have defined some of the most moving and visceral entertainment experiences of the last decade,” said COO Tara Finegan in the context of the Paesano acquisition.
Such deals illustrate how strategic selection focused on cultural durability, global distribution, and franchise longevity underpins the company’s underwriting criteria. The result is a diversified IP portfolio resistant to market volatility.
From Independent to Institutional
The company’s focus on fundamentals data‑driven valuation models, deep catalogue analysis, and a hands‑on approach to royalty collection and exploitation has differentiated it in a crowded market. Its team of about 50 specialists combines acquisition expertise with operational excellence, enabling it to manage music across thousands of titles.
A key inflection point came with a $500 million debt refinancing in 2024 backed by a syndicate led by Fifth Third Bank and Northleaf Capital Partners. That funding unlocks capital to pursue an identified pipeline of ~ $1.5 billion in music rights opportunities.
This blend of private equity‑level capital and deep domain expertise positions Cutting Edge to benefit from broader market shifts particularly as streaming ensures older content continues to be monetized decades after release.
What Comes Next
Industry consolidation is already underway, according to Cutting Edge’s leadership. Tim Hegarty, head of M&A, predicts accelerated roll‑ups as smaller catalog owners struggle to compete on pricing and operational efficiency. At the same time, new partnership structures like the Warner Bros. Discovery JV could become increasingly common as studios look to optimise balance sheets without surrendering creative control.
Beyond the core media music rights business, Cutting Edge has also expanded into adjacent areas such as wellness music through its Myndstream division and collaborations with institutions like the Mayo Clinic, focusing on functional music applications.
Conclusion
Cutting Edge’s journey reflects a broader shift in how music intellectual property is valued. Its success underscores an important lesson for investors and creators alike: there is significant untapped value in the soundtracks that shape our cultural experiences. As the market matures and new capital enters the space, media music rights are poised to secure a more prominent place in the investment landscape.