Blackstone among bidders for Pink Floyd's catalog: sources

Blackstone Inc (BX.N) is among the several bidders for British rock band Pink Floyd's catalogue, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, as the private equity firm looks to bolster its music rights collection.

The process is ongoing and Blackstone is not close to striking a deal for the group behind hits such as Wish You Were Here, Comfortably Numb and Another Brick in the Wall, the people said.

Blackstone declined to comment, while representatives for Pink Floyd did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Financial Times earlier reported that the buyout firm would through Hipgnosis Song Management strike the deal that could value the band's songs at almost half a billion dollars.

Blackstone last year took an ownership stake in Hipgnosis as part of a partnership that planned to deploy around $1 billion to buy music rights and record songs.

Founded by former Elton John manager Merck Mercuriadis, Hipgnosis advises UK-listed Hipgnosis Songs Fund (SONG.L) that lets investors get a piece of the action in music royalties.

Private equity interest in music catalogues has risen in the past few years due to steady returns from royalties and the rise of online streaming. KKR & Co Inc (KKR.N) last year bought a majority stake in OneRepublic artist Ryan Tedder's catalogue valued at $200 million.

A Pink Floyd deal would also further Blackstone's broader push into digital content, with the buyout firm last year agreeing to buy most of Hollywood actress Reese Witherspoon's media company, Hello Sunshine.