Key Metrics
3500+
licensing opportunities identified
Executive Summary
Soundstripe, the premier music licensing company for creative industries, faced a significant challenge monitoring where their content was being used on social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok, where platform-provided tools were insufficient for tracking usage. Even when they did find their content in a commercial post, it was difficult to determine if the content was properly licensed or to connect with unlicensed users to initiate licensing conversations. That's when Soundstripe partnered with Third Chair to design a repeatable system for monitoring their catalog, identifying licensing opportunities, and engaging with agencies and brands to ensure proper licensing. Through this partnership, Soundstripe identified 3500+ licensing opportunities, and turned them into enterprise deals with agencies and brands.
Introduction
Soundstripe is a leading provider of music, video footage, and sound effects for content creators worldwide. Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, Soundstripe began as a subscription licensing service for freelancers and has since expanded to serve the entire creator economy, advertising professionals, production companies, and large enterprises. The company grants users access to a diverse and high-quality media catalog by real artists, catering to a wide range of creative projects, from videos and podcasts to advertisements and films. Soundstripe has worked with over 1.5 million users globally and facilitated over 20 million licensed downloads, and its music has been streamed over 400 billion times across platforms and featured in Grey's Anatomy, Bridgerton, and a Super Bowl LIX spot.
Soundstripe's commitment to supporting artists is evident in its business practices. To date, the company has generated over $12 million for creators through royalties and other compensation. This dedication ensures that the platform's offerings maintain a high standard of quality, with 97.3% of Soundstripe's original music library actively utilized by customers each quarter. Soundstripe's impressive growth trajectory has been recognized by several industry accolades, They were named one of the top 20 fastest-growing middle-market companies in Tennessee by the ACG's Roaring 20 Awards, and for five years straight, they've been named a Top Workplace in Tennessee.
Challenge
In the fast-moving world of social media content creation, Soundstripe's music and audio assets travel through many creative workflows, from influencer campaigns and brand marketing to user-generated content across Instagram, TikTok, and other platforms. However, these platforms do not provide Soundstripe with robust enough tools to monitor where their content lives on those platforms.
This created a unique set of challenges:
When Soundstripe identified uses of their content, it was difficult to determine if the use was licensed from a Soundstripe subscriber or a related agency
If the use was not properly licensed, it was challenging to find the right person to initiate a licensing conversation.
The lack of comprehensive monitoring meant many significant opportunities were left on the table.
Soundstripe needed a way to monitor their catalog usage across social platforms, validate whether uses were properly licensed, and connect with agencies and brands to ensure fair licensing outcomes.
Solution
That's when Soundstripe partnered with Third Chair to design a repeatable system for monitoring their catalog and engaging with agencies and brands.
The integration process began with Third Chair's catalog import feature, which allowed Soundstripe to import and monitor their entire catalog. This gave Soundstripe comprehensive visibility from day one, enabling them to track usage across Instagram, TikTok, and other social platforms.
Using Third Chair's monitoring, Soundstripe was able to identify uses of their content that they were previously unaware of. The platform surfaced uses across social media campaigns and content, enabling Soundstripe and Third Chair to discuss strategy for engaging with each agency and brand based on the specific context of use and whether licensing was required.
With Third Chair's outreach capabilities, Soundstripe was able to connect with the appropriate licensees to continue or initiate partnership discussions. This eliminated the challenge of finding contact information and ensured conversations started with the right decision-makers, whether that meant validating existing subscriptions or initiating new licensing discussions.
Through this integrated approach, Soundstripe was able to:
Monitor where their content appears across Instagram, TikTok, and other social platforms
Validate whether uses require licensing and prioritize the best opportunities to expand their subscriber base and increase licensing revenue
Build relationships with agencies and brands to secure proper licensing outcomes
Result
After working with Third Chair, Soundstripe established a scalable system for identifying licensing opportunities and engaging with agencies and brands across their catalog. The partnership enabled Soundstripe to:
Identify 3500+ licensing opportunities across Instagram, TikTok, and other social platforms where their content was being used
Achieve productive discussions with agencies and brands, enabling Soundstripe to initiate meaningful conversations about licensing agreements and subscriptions
Build a repeatable workflow for monitoring social media usage, validating licensing requirements, and connecting with agencies and brands
This system allowed Soundstripe to transform previously untracked uses into structured licensing opportunities, creating a new revenue stream while ensuring their content was properly licensed and their artists' work was appropriately compensated.
"Third Chair has enabled us to close meaningful enterprise deals we wouldn't have discovered without their monitoring capabilities."
Steven Davis
VP Sales & Partnerships, Soundstripe
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