ole Announces Sale of CEO Stake, Robert Ott to Continue as CEO

ole has announced its CEO and founder, Robert Ott, has sold his stake in the company to founding equity partner Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (Ontario Teachers’). Ott, a veteran of the music industry who founded ole in 2004, will continue to lead ole under a new term as CEO.

“This transaction underscores Ontario Teachers’ commitment to ole and concludes the process that ole ran last year to optimize its capital structure,” Ott said. “I am very pleased to continue to work with Ontario Teachers’ and to lead ole into a new era from the foundation of the great success story we’ve built together over these many years. ole is well-capitalized and is extremely well-positioned to lead and benefit from the disruption and globalization that our Industry is experiencing.”

The company currently operates out of eight offices in the U.S., UK and Canada, and is home to artists like Rush and Timbaland.

Ott added, “I am very excited about the new initiatives that we are working on and with this renewed commitment from Ontario Teachers’ and I look forward to an unprecedented era of growth.”

Ontario Teachers’ Senior Managing Director Ziad Hindo, Capital Markets, commented, “We look forward to the opportunity to further support the continued growth of an iconic, Canadian-based company with a proven track record like ole.”

ole has also been experiencing its most successful creative period with eight No. 1 songs on the US Country charts and top charting singles in the Pop and Urban space with artists such as Justin Timberlake and Sam Smith. The company is in diversified but complementary businesses in music publishing, recorded music labels, production music, a YouTube MCN and global rights management.