Will Michael Jackson Sell His Music?

April 14, 2005 — -- Michael Jackson is in danger of losing much of his most valuable asset -- his catalog of other people's music, including the Beatles'.

Music analysts say he is probably no longer able to demand such huge money for tours, and his record sales are no longer in the superstar range. Jackson is now more music mogul than music performer; the bulk of his revenue is earned by royalties from songs he owns.

These include not only his own compositions, but also an extensive and very lucrative catalog of songs by others.

Most prominently are 251 Beatles songs, including "Yesterday," "Penny Lane" and "Eleanor Rigby," which are played millions of times a year in the United States. The Beatles material is the most valuable collection in the world, generating $80 million in royalties a year -- and Jackson owns half.

"Music publishing is what artists call their money in the bank," said music executive Bruno del Granado. "It's their kids' inheritance."

But now, ABC News has learned that Jackson the music publisher is being advised by his financial team to sell a significant share of the Beatles' song catalog to pay mounting legal bills and operating costs.

Sources say Jackson has missed several payrolls at his Neverland ranch since his trial on child molestation charges began, and several sources say he has a dire cash-flow problem that has even forced him to miss some payments to his attorneys. He is being sued by creditors for nonpayment, and he was behind in rent at a number of Southern California storage facilities for his music videos.

The pop star is on trial in Santa Maria, Calif., accused of molesting a former cancer patient and plying the boy with alcohol. Jackson has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Jackson has huge outstanding loans -- the music catalog is collateral for one debt to Bank of America of $270 million. The cash influx from a sale, valued at a half-billion dollars, would solve all those problems, say analysts, and would provide him with $7 million to $8 million a year to live on.

"I think what has happened is Michael does have some big payments coming due in coming days, and the screws are being turned by some of the creditors who gave them those loans," said Brett Pulley of Forbes magazine.