Kobalt and indie music company UMN join forces to purchase catalog of superstar songwriters Peter Plate and Ulf Leo Sommer, marking Germany’s biggest music rights acquisition to date

A year ago, three ex-BMG senior execs – Dominique Casimir, Maximilian Kolb and Justus Haerder – launched a new Berlin-based entertainment company called umn (pronounced ˈhjuːmən).

Today (October 30), the indie music company has confirmed details of its first acquisition, and they say it’s a big one.

The company has partnered with Kobalt to acquire the authors’ share and the publishing rights to the catalog of Peter Plate and Ulf Leo Sommer, the multi-award-winning German songwriters behind what umn Entertainment calls “some of the country’s most celebrated pop repertoire of the last 35 years”.

While financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed, the companies claim that the deal is “Germany’s largest music rights acquisition yet.”

umn co-founder Justus Haerder exited BMG at the end of 2021, after 12 years with the company, most recently leading M&A.

Dominique Casimir, meanwhile, is the former Chief Content Officer of BMG and a former board member of the Bertelsmann Content Alliance.

The exec, who first joined BMG when it was reborn as an indie in 2008, was named CCO of the company in May 2022. Casimir exited BMG in March 2023.

Maximilian Kolb was most recently EVP of Repertoire & Marketing Continental Europe at BMG. He exited the role in July last year after over a decade with the company. Kolb joined BMG in 2012 as an A&R manager and was ultimately appointed Managing Director for the GSA region in 2019.

Their new deal with Peter Plate and Ulf Leo Sommer in partnership with Kobalt covers the duo’s entire body of work, including their career as Rosenstolz, one of Germany’s “most influential and best-selling pop acts”, as well as hit songs written for other leading artists such as Sarah Connor, Roland Kaiser, Max Raabe, Zweiraumwohnung and many more.

The deal also encompasses their billion-plus streaming work on the soundtracks to Germany’s kids film franchise Bibi & Tina, and the songs in the string of hit musicals the pair have produced on the stage of Berlin’s legendary Theater des Westens.

The combined streaming total of the duo’s work is approaching 3 billion streams.

“We couldn’t have thought of a better beginning for the journey of partnerships and acquisitions ahead.”

Dominique Casimir, Maximilian Kolb and Justus Haerder

umn co-founders Dominique Casimir, Maximilian Kolb and Justus Haerder said: “Peter and Ulf have shaped the sound and identity of German pop culture for decades and remain a defining force in contemporary music.

“They have created one of the most influential and successful song catalogs in German pop music. Their works are part of our cultural heritage. Our long-standing collaboration is personal – built on friendship, trust and respect – and it is an honor for us to now preserve and develop this body of work together with Kobalt.

“As umn, we see our role not only in enabling such landmark transactions but in shaping the creative future of these works – creating new contexts, making them accessible to today’s and future generations, and ensuring their continued relevance and impact. We couldn’t have thought of a better beginning for the journey of partnerships and acquisitions ahead.”

“We are proud to be partnering with umn to become the custodians of Peter and Ulf’s extraordinary catalog – a body of work that has left a profound mark on German pop music and beyond.”

Laurent Hubert, Kobalt 

Kobalt CEO Laurent Hubert said: “We are proud to be partnering with umn to become the custodians of Peter and Ulf’s extraordinary catalog – a body of work that has left a profound mark on German pop music and beyond.

“At Kobalt, our mission is to combine global reach with transparent, writer-friendly administration, ensuring that timeless songs remain alive across generations and territories.

“Partnering with umn Entertainment has been key to bringing this acquisition to life, and together we will safeguard and amplify the cultural and commercial legacy of these songs for the future.”

“The sale of our catalog gives us the freedom to focus on our theatre work and to tell new stories on stage independently and with full creative energy.”

Peter Plate and Ulf Leo Sommer

Peter Plate and Ulf Leo Sommer added: “We see this not as an ending, but as a new beginning. The sale of our catalog gives us the freedom to focus on our theatre work and to tell new stories on stage independently and with full creative energy.

“We’re grateful to umn and Kobalt for their trust and for keeping our songs in such good hands. We would also like to take this opportunity to thank our lawyer Bettina Strehl, who provided us with legal support during this process.”

Plate and Sommer’s catalog spans chart-topping singles, platinum-selling albums, and what umn and Kobalt call “enduring hits that have shaped the sound of German pop since the early 1990s”.

The companies noted that as Rosenstolz, Plate and Sommer released multiple No.1 albums, selling over 4 million records in Germany alone, building a “cross-generational fanbase with their blend of pop, chanson, and socially- conscious songwriting”.

Beyond their own artist career, they have penned hits for other artists, including Sarah Connor’s million-selling 2015 album Muttersprache.

Elsewhere, as artistic directors of Berlin’s historic Theater des Westens, Plate and Sommer have created and produced multiple hit musicals, including Ku’damm 56, Ku’damm 59, Romeo & Julia – Liebe ist alles, and Die Amme, which have attracting “millions of visitors”.

According to umn and Kobalt, the proceeds from the catalog deal will support the development of new productions, including their upcoming original musical Wir sind am Leben, set in 1990s Berlin.

Dominique Casimir, Maximilian Kolb and Justus Haerder launched their new company in September 2024, with singer-songwriter Max Giesinger named as the debut signing.Music Business Worldwide