Soundtrack CEO Ola Sars
Ola Sars, the veteran music tech entrepreneur who founded four companies in the music industry, has recently been making waves in the industry with the launch of his latest venture, Soundtrack.
The story of Sars’ journey into the music industry is a romantic one. Fifteen years ago, while vacationing with friends on the island of Ibiza, Sars decided that he wanted to make a living out of his passion for music. “I realized that they were working in the music industry, making a good living, and having fun at the same time, and I was working in a more traditional industry, having a great career, but wasn’t happy,” said Sars.
Throughout the years, Sars has worked on various projects ranging from launching Pacemaker, the world’s first pocket-sized DJ system, to co-founding Beats Music, which was later acquired by Apple and became Apple Music. His latest venture, Soundtrack, is a streaming platform for businesses that enables businesses to access music for their commercial needs.
Sars believes that companies who can help find the right music for the right context and deliver that music will be powerful players in the value chain. He hopes that Soundtrack will be a leader in this space and is already off to a great start with acquiring the popular music streaming platform Let’s Mix. “We moved fast, and it was crazy,” said Sars. He now looks forward to seeing Soundtrack grow and establish itself in the music industry. “We’re still very small, but we’re scaling into the global markets through selling software self-service to businesses.”
Soundtrack is now a global brand and is rapidly growing, with a revenue of over $25 million and a growth rate of around 60%. With the right leadership and vision, Sars believes that Soundtrack can continue to be a leader in the music streaming industry.
“The biggest challenge is how to make sure that people that do business with us are happy,” said Sars. “We must ensure that we have the right deals with the right IP holders and that everyone gets the right return. We have to make sure that we’re in compliance and that we’re always providing the best service and the best value.”
The music industry constantly evolves, and Sars looks forward to seeing what the future holds. He is also hopeful that AI will have a positive impact on the industry, enabling more efficient and effective ways of finding the right music for the right context. “I’m an opportunist, and I tend to see technology as a potential positive driver,” said Sars. “We were very early in pioneering the use of AI in the music industry.”
Sars’ journey into the music industry has been long and winding, but with the launch of Soundtrack and the acquisition of Let’s Mix, he is ready and excited to see what the future holds.