A new book about Edgar Bronfman and Warner Music has some details about what went down behind the scenes in the negotiations to buy Maverick from Madonna: http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/20...deal_book.html
Parts of that story seem a little ridiculous, but I wonder how much Warner messing with Madonna over Maverick led to her decision to leave for LiveNation, and how much that battle (combined with the American Life sales failure) contributed to the less-than-stellar promotion for Confessions in the US.