Warner, EMI Music dating again?

EMI Music and Warner Music may be heading for merger talks again, according to the Times UK. The two record labels, each considerably smaller than rivals Universal Music and SonyBMG, have flirted with the idea of combining forces several times in the past, but talks have never come to fruition.

Now, the paper says the two companies are "once again on the verge of full-blown merger talks."

The news seems to be sparked by Wall Street rumors, themselves triggered in part by the lukewarm public offering of Warner stock earlier this month, which raised several billion dollars less than executives had hoped. EMI has also had a difficult year, with its executives blaming anemic profits on the delayed release of a Coldplay album.