# Create Music Group Backs Nettwerk Buyout… | Dynamoi News

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Description: Founders Terry McBride and Mark Jowett will exit current private equity backers while migrating a 40-year catalog to Create’s data infrastructure.

Dynamoi News Create Music Group Backs Nettwerk Buyout With $300M Injection Founders Terry McBride and Mark Jowett will exit current private equity backers while migrating a 40-year catalog to Create’s data infrastructure. Published February 6, 2026 Editor Trevor Loucks Editorial policy → In a deal that redefines the ceiling for independent music financing, Create Music Group (CMG) has executed a definitive agreement to invest over $300 million into Nettwerk Music Group. Confirmed on February 6, 2026, the transaction facilitates a massive management buyout (MBO), allowing Nettwerk co-founders Terry McBride and Mark Jowett to exit existing institutional investors and regain operational sovereignty. This is not a traditional acquisition where a major swallows a mini-major. Instead, it signals the arrival of "infrastructure-backed independence"—a model where legacy catalogs access liquidity and tech stacks without surrendering their brand identity. Anatomy of a buyout The deal structure, expected to close later this month, bifurcates the business into two distinct lanes: creative operations and asset management. The front end: Nettwerk retains full autonomy over A&R, marketing, and artist management. The leadership team stays in place, preserving the culture that broke artists from Sarah McLachlan to Passenger. The back end: CMG takes a "controlling position" in the music IP portfolio. Nettwerk’s massive catalog will migrate onto Create’s proprietary operating system, leveraging CMG’s data pipelines for collection and monetization. Key insight: This deal separates the low-margin labor of breaking acts from the high-margin asset management of legacy hits, allowing each partner to specialize where they have leverage. A private equity shuffle While the press release frames this as a victory for independence, the capital flow reveals a sophisticated consolidation within the private equity sector. The connective tissue here is Flexpoint Ford . 2023: Flexpoint Ford leads a recapitalization round for Nettwerk. 2024: Flexpoint Ford leads a $165 million investment into Create Music Group. 2026: Create buys out Nettwerk's "existing investors." Though the official statement is coy about which investors are exiting, the math suggests Flexpoint Ford is effectively moving Nettwerk’s assets from a direct holding to a portfolio company (CMG) better equipped to maximize the yield. It is an asset transfer disguised as an MBO. Platform over label For Create Music Group, this validates its transition from a YouTube monetization shop to a comprehensive industry utility. CMG is betting it can increase the LTV of Nettwerk’s 40-year catalog by applying better metadata hygiene and algorithmic optimization. Create is not trying to be a label; it is building an operating system. By absorbing the backend of a major indie without taking on the overhead of frontline label services, CMG rapidly scales its market share. This aligns with their aggressive 2024-2025 spree, which included purchasing the !K7 label group and the Deadmau5 catalog. Solving the middle-class squeeze For Nettwerk, the deal provides a vital lifeline following a rocky period that included a 10% workforce reduction. Mid-sized indies are currently trapped in a "middle-class squeeze"—too big to operate cheaply, but too poor to compete with Universal or Sony on advances. The benefit: The $300 million injection clears the cap table and provides "substantial follow-on capital" for new signings. The trade-off: Nettwerk management bets that their A&R ears are their true value, while conceding that a tech-native company like Create is better suited to handle the pipes and plumbing of distribution. This transaction serves as a blueprint for other heritage indies in 2026. As interest rates complicate pure catalog sales, the federated model—keeping the name but outsourcing the engine—may become the standard for survival. Related stories Create Music Group Finances AI Artist Roster in Multi-Million JV February 5, 2026 TikTok Launches US Joint Venture With 80% American Ownership January 24, 2026 Warner Music Settles $24M Copyright Suit With Crumbl May 30, 2026 Borchetta Buys Back Big Machine Brand as HYBE Profit Falls 73% February 13, 2026 Latest News May 30, 2026 Warner Music Settles $24M Copyright Suit With Crumbl May 29, 2026 UMG Board Unanimously Rejects Bill Ackman’s $64B Takeover Bid May 29, 2026 Spotify Rolls Out $10.99 Basic Tier Amid $150M Royalties Dispute May 28, 2026 Sony Weaponizes 2024 AI Opt-Out in 61,000-Track Suno Lawsuit May 27, 2026 33 States Demand Ticketmaster Divestiture After Antitrust Verdict May 26, 2026 Spotify Shares Surge 16% on UMG Deal for Paid AI Remix Tools See pricing →