Today we’re breaking down Universal Music Group. As one of the largest music businesses in the world, UMG is home to many of the world’s greatest artists, including Taylor Swift, U2, and The Beatles catalog. A discussion on UMG requires a deep dive into the history of music itself, how it was historically monetized, the shift from physical to digital, and what streaming has meant for the various pieces of the ecosystem. Our guest, Arman Gokgol-Kline, a partner and investor at Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb, walks us through that evolution of the music industry before we dive in on UMG. In our discussion, we first break down the industry pre and post Napster, looking at the ways music was sold historically, and how that led to both record profits and a consumer revolution. We then assess streaming’s impact on the industry and how, contrary to what you might think, labels may be more important in a marketplace where it’s easier than ever for creators to record and release music. Finally, we finish with UMG’s place in the ecosystem. The primary drivers of the business, how they’re able to attract the world’s superstars, and how they think about deploying dollars to acquire new artists and timeless catalogs. Please enjoy this fantastic breakdown of Universal Music Group.   For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here.   -----   Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.   Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.   Follow us on Twitter: @JoinColossus | @patrick_oshag | @jspujji | @zbfuss   Show Notes [00:03:28] - [First question] - How technology disrupted the music business and it’s evolving history [00:12:11] - What the industry of music labels looks like from the 90s to today [00:20:46] - How it feels as a high-tier artist to engage with a label directly today [00:27:47] - The revenue and business model of an artist akin to Taylor Swift [00:30:11] - The differences between UMG's main sources of revenue; music publishing and recording [00:34:35] - General margins and trends for music publishing [00:35:49] - Ownership and mechanics of monetizing an artist’s Intellectual Property  [00:40:24] - How streaming revenues are divided among stakeholders [00:45:50] - History of the bargaining power of labels and streaming platforms [00:50:52] - Capital allocation, ROI, and acquiring IP and catalogs [00:57:06] - Thoughts on the growth profile of the industry as an investor [01:01:50] - Potential risks to UMG from emerging technology and new creator trends  [01:08:17] - Reasons why an artist would pick UMG over other major labels [01:12:09] - Diversity and how artists are sometimes treated by labels [01:13:31] - A growing increase in music consumption across the world

Today, we are breaking down John Deere. With a history dating back almost two centuries, Deere has been a mainstay in the agriculture industry for generations. And despite its rich history as an incumbent, Deere is also on the leading edge of technology and innovation in ag-tech. To help break down John Deere, Zack Fuss is joined by Matt Coutts. Matt comes from a multi-generation family of farmers, and brings a unique ability to connect finance and farming. During our conversation, we discuss what the ag ecosystem looks like today, what drives farming economics, and why Deere holds such a strong competitive advantage that seems to only be growing. Please enjoy this breakdown of John Deere.   For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here.   -----   Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, Inc. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.   Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.   Follow us on Twitter: @JoinColossus | @patrick_oshag | @jspujji | @zbfuss   Show Notes [00:03:04] - [First question] - What Matt does as a farmer and where he spends his time [00:03:54] - How big the global crop production and agriculture industry is  [00:05:48] - Key considerations in production efficiency with such a large market [00:08:15] - John Deere’s role in the global agriculture industry [00:08:58] - Deere’s business model and how they generate revenue [00:10:14] - What farmers tend to buy and how distribution works [00:12:06] - How a farmer traditionally thinks about their business [00:13:18] - Some of the large machine purchases that a farmer needs [00:14:11] - What a combine does and its role in crop production [00:14:53] - The landscape and types of family farms  [00:15:57] - Whether or not farmers can earn above industry returns through any cycle [00:18:18] - The role Deere plays in controlling variable costs to improve returns [00:20:38] - The things Matt’s most focused on as a farmer and how Deere optimize outcomes [00:22:48] - Brand loyalty and mixing and matching machines from different brands [00:24:55] - What precision agriculture actually means [00:27:55] - Overview of a harvest and how Deere equipment interacts with it [00:31:16] - Unit economics and how their recurring relationship generates profit [00:34:01] - Interpreting data, who owns the data, and digital agriculture analytics [00:35:55] - What enables Deere to generate such large margins as an industrial manufacturer [00:40:35] - Is Deere a higher-priced product than its competitors? [00:41:16] - Recent acquisitions and what it says about their growth [00:43:17] - The John Deere API and potential third party integration  [00:44:28] - Will farmers even be physically operating machinery in the future? [00:46:35] - Lessons learned as a builder and an investor from John Deere’s story