Warner Music Group sharpens India play with direct Warner Chappell entry

In a significant strategic shift, Warner Chappell Music has launched direct operations in India, marking its transition from a sub-publishing model to a full-fledged, on-ground presence. The move underscores parent Warner Music Group’s growing conviction that India is no longer just a consumption market, but a critical node in the global music value chain. 

The company has expanded the mandate of Jay Mehta, managing director, recorded music and publishing, India and SAARC, who will now lead both recorded music and publishing operations across India and the SAARC region. The unified structure aligns with WMG’s global approach of integrating rights ownership and distribution, allowing it to build a tighter grip on the lifecycle of music—from creation to monetisation.  

Mehta, who has served as managing director of Warner Music India since its launch in 2020, said the shift is aimed at connecting Indian creators to global opportunities. “India’s songwriters are redefining genres. A direct presence helps bridge local creativity with global reach,” he noted, adding that the company can now offer “the scale and sophistication of a global publisher” to Indian talent.  

India’s music market hits an inflection point  

The timing of the entry is telling. India’s music economy is expanding rapidly, but more importantly, it is structurally evolving. Creator collections touched ₹7 billion in 2024, growing 42% year-on-year, while the IFPI now ranks India as the 15th largest recorded music market globally. 

The bigger shift, however, is cultural. Bollywood’s dominance over music consumption is steadily weakening, with its share dropping from roughly 80% to below 50%. Independent and non-film music are gaining ground, and domestic repertoire already accounts for nearly 90% of streaming. 

This diversification is exposing inefficiencies in publishing—particularly in rights management, royalty tracking, and global licensing—areas where multinational players see headroom for value creation.  

From licensing outpost to core market 

Warner Chappell’s direct entry signals a broader repositioning. Rather than operating through intermediaries, the company will now offer end-to-end publishing services, including royalty administration, sync licensing, and data-driven insights through proprietary tools. 

Global leadership sees this as more than geographic expansion. Guy Moot, co-chair and CEO, and Carianne Marshall, co-chair and COO, said the focus is on building a creator-first ecosystem. In a joint statement, they emphasised the goal of ensuring music is “heard, protected, and rewarded globally,” while backing India’s growing pool of internationally relevant songwriters. 

For Robert Kyncl, CEO of Warner Music Group, the India play fits into a larger growth thesis. “India is central to our global strategy,” he said, adding that combining publishing and recorded music under one leadership creates “a unified powerhouse” to serve both artists and audiences.  

Building infrastructure for the next phase 

A key part of WMG’s India strategy is infrastructure. Its Mumbai headquarters will house advanced studio facilities accessible to songwriters—an offering that remains rare among global music majors in the country. 

Alongside physical infrastructure, the company is rolling out its global tech stack in India, including AI-powered royalty matching and real-time analytics tools. These are aimed at addressing long-standing industry challenges around transparency and delayed payments.  

The larger play 

The entry of Warner Chappell in a direct capacity reflects a deeper shift in how global music companies view India. As streaming matures and paid subscriptions gain traction, the locus of value is moving upstream—from distribution to ownership of rights. 

For WMG, the bet is clear: India’s next phase of growth will not just be driven by listeners, but by creators—and the systems that support them. 

If that thesis plays out, the real competition will no longer be about hits, but about who controls the pipes through which those hits generate value.