The empire that Robert Sillerman hastily built during the American-led EDM boom is crumbling. His baby, SFX Entertainment has declared bankruptcy and assets are being auctioned off. One of its prized possessions, Beatport, the online dance music marketplace, budding streaming service and editorial source, was supposed to have its auction completed today, May 5, but that has been delayed.
A court date to name the winner of the auction for Beatport has been delayed all the way to May 26.
"At the request of interested parties who require more time to finalize their bids, we have agreed to reschedule the Beatport sale hearing to the next available court date on May 26. A new auction date will be announced once determined," said a Beatport spokesperson in a statement via Billboard.
The original timeline called for bids to be entered by April 25. Then the auction would commence on May 3 with the winner being named on May 5, but that has been pushed back to May 26. According to an earlier court filing, 24 parties expressed interest in Beatport, with 18 signing non-disclosure agreements and performing due diligence on the company.
The SFX Entertainment bankruptcy restructuring has had some dramatic effects on the various properties snatched up by Sillerman during his buying spree. ID&T's American offshoot of Tomorrowland, TomorrowWorld was canceled in 2016. Organizers won't directly attribute it to the financial situation, but anyone can connect the dots. Totem OneLove, an event company in Australia, canceled its biggest festival, Stereosonic, in 2016.
In addition to Beatport, SFX is also putting its internal marketing company, Fame House, on the block as well.
