Michael Jackson would have earned somewhere between $1.1 and $1.5 billion in the next fews years of his life if the pop star hadn't passed away in 2009, or at least so testified an accountant testifying on behalf of the Jackson family in its ongoing $40 billion lawsuit against concert promoter AEG Live. Attorneys for the company had plenty of questions about the numbers however.
Arthur Erk, an accountant and expert on music royalties, based his "conservative" numbers on Jackson's scheduled ten-show stint in London, and presumed that a lengthy world tour would follow. His numbers also assume the pop star would have attempted to produce a Las Vegas stage show utilizing his music, and therefore bringing in more royalties and merchandise dollars. Many questioned Erk's figures because of all the assumptions being made, but AEG's attorneys pointed out some other flaws in the accountant's logic during the trial on Wednesday.
The first issue drawn was that Erk theorized the performer would have played a 260-show stretch over a period of three years. Jackson had never played such a lengthy tour in his life, and considering the health troubles he was having just trying to prepare for ten shows in one location, it seems unlikely that he would've aimed that high.
"It wasn't a matter of history," Erk said. "This was going to be a final extravaganza. He was going to do a blowout tour, he would have earned a lot of money."
Speaking of extravaganza, AEG's legal team also questioned the spending totals for Jackson that Erk presumed. His numbers estimated that the vocalist would have spent around $134 million during a 15-year period. Jackson however was notorious for his expenditures. He died an estimated $400 million in debt. His plans for the comeback were lavish, and even with sellout crowds, the margin of profit may not have been that high.
Jackson's mother Katherine is expected to testify at some point this week.
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