Company Town : STACKING UP SALES

Total album and single sales of CDs and cassettes for the week ended May 29, compared to week-ago and year-ago levels, in millions of units: Latest week:

Albums: 9.5

Singles: 1.8 Week-ago:

Albums: 9.1

Singles: 1.8 Year-ago Albums: 8.6

Singles: 1.8

Hits Magazine Tip of the Week

The race to acquire Famous Music Publishing from debt-heavy Viacom is about to heat up, with industry chatter saying the sale’s point man, CAA’s Michael Ovitz, is encountering some very copyright-hungry suitors. Insiders estimate that the company, which owns more than 100,000 copyrights, has profit of $5 million to $7 million annually and could be sold for as much as $150 million to $200 million. Early handicapping is designating front-runner status to recent start-ups Sony Music Publishing and PolyGram Music Publishing, which are intent on building up their catalogues. *

Note: Hits magazine is a weekly music industry trade publication. Source: Soundscan Inc.