Courtesy of Side-Line Magazine. They sold their souls to The Man......

[10 May 2002]
Hot telex news: Mute sold to EMI
Mute is no longer an independent label. EMI have announced today that
they have acquired Mute, one of Europe?s leading independent record
companies, with an artist roster that includes Depeche Mode, Fad Gadget,
Moby, Erasure, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds and many more indie acts. With
the acquisition EMI is extending an existing licensing relationship that
Mute has had with EMI?s Virgin Records for over 15 years. Founded in
London in 1978 by Daniel Miller, Mute has consistently been at the
forefront of artist development. Miller, executive chairman of Mute, will
continue to be responsible for all of the company?s global activities. EMI
will pay 23 million UK pounds for Mute, plus up to 19 million UK pounds
of potential performance-related payments, over a period of four years.
The take-over did not really come as a surprise, in previous interviews
Miller already argumented that joining up with a major would be one of
the most logical decisions for the near future.

.....but hey HE wanted it that way! I guess he just can't get enough..... LOL