A SaaS company providing rights management and royalty accounting solutions for the music and media industries has completed a £4.3 million fundraise.
Synchtank’s Series A round was led by Octopus Ventures, with participation from existing management and shareholders.
The value of music intellectual property has skyrocketed in recent years thanks to the increased global adoption of streaming and a myriad of digital channels.
But while this new ecosystem is set to propel revenues to record heights, it has also created unprecedented challenges for those tasked with managing the underlying rights and making sense of an explosion of data coming in from endless distribution channels.
Synchtank seeks to address these challenges with software that provides the backbone for any modern media company looking to unlock more value from their IP. With the commercial release of royalty accounting platform IRIS at the beginning of 2021, Synchtank now offers an end-to-end solution, from asset, metadata and rights management to royalty collection.
Customers range from independent labels and publishers through to global enterprises such as Warner Music, NFL, Vice, and the majority of Hollywood studios amongst others. Integration with enterprise systems such as SAP and Salesforce is a key part of the offering.
The company is looking to strengthen its team, improve and expand upon existing services and features, and grow its customer footprint beyond North America and Europe.
“We have come a long way as a company with phenomenal progress in the last two years taking the company far beyond its original sync-based business,” said CEO Rory Bernard.
“We now provide the backbone for any modern media company, encompassing every part of their software requirements.
“We are excited to be working with Octopus with their focus and commitment on a long-term strategy in the company, funding not only this current round but also building further finance rounds as music, media and broadcast growth continues to explode, presenting a wealth of opportunities.”
Edward Keelan, B2B software investor at Octopus Ventures, added: “The rapid growth of streaming means the music industry is almost unrecognizable from a decade ago, with huge investment now flowing into rights acquisitions too.
“While this is clearly a positive, it’s also created an explosion of complex data that has become challenging to manage.
“Synchtank is perfectly placed to capitalize on these trends, with a compelling end-to-end solution built on industry-leading technology. Ultimately, its platform allows rights holders to unlock more value from their IP, which has helped Synchtank to build an already impressive roster of clients for its stage.
“Rory and the team have huge depth of experience in the industry and we’re excited to support them on their mission as they keep scaling.”