Jan 31 (Reuters) - Warner Bros Discovery ( WBD ) and

Cutting Edge Group, an investor and manager of media music

rights, have created a joint venture to co-own the entertainment

studio's catalog of film and TV music, the companies said on

Friday.

Warner Bros will keep creative and operational control of

the music rights, while Cutting Edge, in addition to its

investment in the business, will jointly manage the partnership.

German asset manager DWS Group is also

co-investing and sponsoring the deal.

"The creation of the JV is, by value, one of the largest

music rights deals ever transacted and spans almost 100 years of

copyrights," according to a statement by the companies.

The companies will jointly aim to maximize the distribution

and revenue potential of the music portfolio, the statement

added.

The music portfolio, which contains more than 400,000

compositions and song cues, includes music from the Harry Potter

and Lord of the Rings franchises, DC Comics movies, as well as

TV shows such as Friends and Game of Thrones, among others.

Cutting Edge Group, founded in 2006, has assembled a

specialist portfolio of more than 2,000 titles across soundtrack

albums. It completed a $500 million debt refinancing last year.