Universal is spending $50 million to boost its market share in Thailand. Expect more M&A activity in Asia to follow.

MBW Reacts is a series of analytical articles from Music Business Worldwide written in response to major recent entertainment events or news stories. In this case, we’re looking at the market dynamics behind Universal Music Group‘s decision to spend USD $45.5 million (and potentially another $4.9 million) to buy a majority stake in one of Thailand’s most significant independent record companies.

Universal Music Group is the world’s biggest recorded music company by a not-insignificant distance.

In Q1 this year, UMG’s recorded music turnover from streaming was USD $1.426 billion, according to financial data published in the Netherlands for its investors*.

That was 27% bigger than the equivalent global streaming recorded music turnover at Sony (USD $1.123 billion) in calendar Q1 – and nearly double the streaming recorded music turnover posted by Warner Music Group (USD $773…