Spotify, further bulking up its suite of tools for music artists, announced the acquisition of SoundBetter, a Brooklyn-based audio production and collaboration marketplace.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Founded in 2012, SoundBetter says it has more than 180,000 artists registered on its network in 14,000 cities spanning 176 countries. The company lets musicians tap into its database of singers, producers, songwriters, session musicians, and mixing and mastering engineers.
To date, SoundBetter claims, it has paid over $19 million to musicians and producers. Currently its payouts average about $1 million per month. It’s unclear, however, how widely used the service is in the music biz.
Spotify will combine SoundBetter into the Spotify for Artists group, which caters to more than 400,000 artists and their teams. According to Spotify, the SoundBetter acquisition will give artists a new avenue to connect with collaborators or generate additional income.
“We’re excited that creators can generate income through SoundBetter, as well as benefit from its network of top professionals — from instrumentalists to songwriters to producers — as they perfect their tracks,” Beckwith Kloss, Spotify’s VP product, creator, said in announcing the pact.
SoundBetter co-founder and CEO Shachar Gilad said the startup will benefit from Spotify’s “global scale, resources, and vision to expand our network and drive more economic opportunities for artists of all levels.”
SoundBetter’s investors included 500 Startups, Foundry Group, entrepreneur and author Eric Ries, and Verizon Ventures. The company has not disclosed how much funding it raised.
According to SoundBetter, music pros registered in its database include “Kanye West’s Producer, Hoobastank’s Drummer, Jamiroquai’s Guitarist, Beyonce’s Songwriter, Joe Cocker’s Bass player, Herbie Hancock’s Engineer, Morrissey’s Guitarist, The Killers’ Mixing Engineer, [and] George Michael’s Mastering Engineer.”
