Aim hit by Warner fallout.

Impala's Warner deal sparks revolt, as MoS and Gut quit Aim in protest

By Paul Williams

Indies organisation Aim is facing a potential crisis after two of its leading members resigned over Impala's decision to back a Warner takeover of EMI.

Ministry of Sound and Gut both quit the organisation at the end of last week, angry not only over the link-up by the European indie group with Warner, but citing a lack of consultation about the move.

"The Impala announcement was a complete surprise to us," says MoS managing director Lohan Presencer. "We weren't even aware the conversations were going on. As the largest member of Aim and one of the largest members of Impala, we would at least have expected to have been consulted."

As head of Europe's largest independent record company, Presencer believes the deal announced last week between Impala and Warner will worsen the position of the indie sector.

"It's difficult enough to compete with two `super' majors, but having a third `super' major with Warner and EMI is going to make it even harder for us," he says.