There’s a reason for Uppbeat‘s positive energy. The UK-based startup, which supplies creators with affordable background music and sound, just raised £4.6 million.
That total comes from “an undisclosed investor,” according to an Uppbeat press release. When translated into U.S. dollars, the Series A round is equivalent to about $6.15 million, which is a nice sum for the young venture.
“Everyone has it in themselves to create something incredible,” said Uppbeat CEO Lewis Foster in a statement. “When we launched Uppbeat last year, it was all about giving everyone the freedom to express their creativity without the fear of losing out to copyright claims or having to pay for expensive subscriptions to music licensing platforms.”
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Uppbeat boasts an extensive library of copyright-free music tracks, which can be sorted by their genre, vibe, or relative popularity. The platform includes its own trending tab, which lists its most-used pieces of music. Uppbeat has approximately 500,000 users.
The copyright-free sound industry has advanced a long way since the days when all of YouTube used the same three Kevin MacLeod pieces as background music. A big player in that space is Epidemic Sound, which has expanded beyond music to offer copyright-free audio effects as well. Last year, the Swedish company raised $450 million at a $1.4 billion valuation.
Not to be outdone, Uppbeat recently added its own sound effect library for paying users. With its free base tier and $6.99 premium structure, Uppbeat has more affordable prices than Epidemic Sound; on the latter platform, subscriptions are required and start at $12 per month.
Now that Uppbeat has closed its funding round, there’s plenty of cause for celebration. If the company wants to use its own library to create a playlist for its party, I’d suggest the “Good Vibes” and “Hype” categories.
