"American Idol" producers may still be hunting to fill the judges panel, but they've made up their minds on a new home for the hit Fox franchise's musical artists.
Universal Music Group will market, promote and distribute albums from "Idol" finalists and winning contestants through UMG's Interscope Geffen A&M division, "Idol" creator Simon Fuller announced Tuesday through his 19 Entertainment. The rights previously belonged to Sony.
“With Idol celebrating our 10th season I wanted to inject some new power and weight behind our brand," Fuller said in a statement announcing the "multi-year" contract.
Since its 2001 debut, "Idol" has sold more music than any other TV show in history, with over 100 million units in North America and over 120 million songs on iTunes.
Auditions are currently under way for the series' 10th season. Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez are widely regarded to be joining the series, but no official announcement has yet been made.
