Now that the King of Pop is dead, where will all his estate go? Will there be anything left after settling debts? In the first place, will debts have to be settled at all?
Michael Jackson reportedly planned to end his longstanding feud with Paul McCartney by leaving him the Beatles' back catalog in his will last January 2009. It is not known if this was finalized before the time of his death. Jacko and Macca have been estranged since a falling out back in 1985, after Jackson beat out McCartney and Yoko Ono — widow of John Lennon — in a bidding war for the rights to 200 of Fab Four's legendary songs.
Sir Paul, 66, has long felt betrayed by Jackson, now 50, on principle. In 2006 McCartney said, "You know what doesn't feel very good, is going on tour and paying to sing all my songs. Every time I sing 'Hey Jude,' I've got to pay someone."Another candidate would be first wife Lisa Marie Presley whom he married in 1993 and divorce shortly a year after.
Another marriage later on was during the Australian leg of the HIStory World Tour in the mid 90s, Jackson married dermatologist nurse Deborah Jeanne Rowe, with whom he fathered a son, Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr. (also known as "Prince"), and a daughter, Paris Michael Katherine Jackson. After the couple divorced in 1999, with Rowe giving full custody rights of the children to Jackson, they remained friends.
Jackson's third child, Prince Michael Jackson II (also known as Blanket) was born in 2002. The mother's identity was never released by Jackson, but he has said the child was the result of artificial insemination from a surrogate mother and his own sperm cells.
Surely, the children will get their piece of the Jackson pie.
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With assets of nearly $1bn at stake, the obvious choice in inheritors should be Jackson’s children, Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11, and seven-year-old Prince Michael II, known as Blanket. But things are not so cut and dry.
A custody battle may be on the cards as sources close to the Jackson family say ex-wife Rowe is to receive initial custody while long-term arrangements have yet to be sorted out. Family attorney Brian Oxman revealed to Radar the children are likely to be in the care of Katherine, Jackson’s mother. “Probably Mrs Jackson will take care of them,” he said.
It is still too early to learn, if ever, the full contents of Jackson’s will, but early reports suggest McCartney could be one of the beneficiaries. Reports earlier this year said Jackson had left McCartney his stake in the Beatles’ song catalogue. But given that this share already has a $200m loan against it, there could be a while before the McCartney gets the songs.
But Sony at least has a chance of recovering some money. The company that owns the rights to Jackson’s music may boost revenue through a rebound in sales of the late pop icon’s CDs and DVDs, analysts say.
Tokyo-based Sony had planned before Jackson’s death to start selling five of the star’s CD packages including Thriller and Bad from July 8 in Japan.
Sony owns the rights for Jackson’s Off the Wall, Thriller, Bad, Dangerous and HIStory albums.
Meanwhile Sony didn’t comment on the increased sales. A statement by Howard Stringer, Sony chief executive officer, said: “Michael Jackson was a brilliant troubadour for his generation, a genius whose music reflected the passion and creativity of an era.”
http://www.business24-7.ae/Articles/2009/6/Pages/26062009/06272009_d098ff149e524d0da6fa189dcb28e33d.aspx