Rumblefish, which licenses music for users of YouTube and other social video platforms, has pushed its catalog past 1 million songs, making it the largest pre-cleared music licensing catalog for the social world.
Rumblefish has added to that library through deals with other large music catalogs, such as indie music store CD Baby and APM Music.
It has used that growing catalog to license songs for programs on TNT and MTV, but the company’s bread and butter remains social video, those videos uploaded by musicians and filmmakers – typically amateurs – to online portals like YouTube and Vimeo.
“Social video is taking over every industry,” Rumblefish’s CEO Paul Anthony told TheWrap. “What you can’t separate from video is soundtracks, and this milestone means soundtracks are becoming a mainstream kind of thing for social video.”
Also Read: Rumblefish Accesses 3.5 Million Songs With CD Baby Deal
Anthony likened a YouTube video’s soundtrack to applying filters to your photos on Instagram, making a more amateur effort seem like professional work.
YouTube users looking to upgrade their videos can just go to the Friendly Music site and use it as as a one-stop shop for sampling different songs and upgrading their videos.
Ryan Huston, one of the independent artists who has benefited from the licensing of his music, said that Rumblefish's efforts have helped get his name out there and lined his pocket.
“In an increasingly digital era, it’s so easy to become lost in the chaos,” Huston told TheWrap. “Anyone can upload their music to YouTube, MySpace or Facebook. Licensing seems to be the way to make money, and for unsigned artists it’s not the easiest thing to come by.”