Member Article

Startup working with BBC and Vimeo on their music composition raises £500k

London-based creative network Iris has invested half a million pounds in Filmstro, the Brighton-based software startup that has developed a music composition platform for content creators.

The £500k funding has come through Iris’ innovation and ventures arm, The Iris Nursery, and will help to further support Filmstro’s expansion across the advertising market, where it is already trusted by the likes of the BBC and Vimeo.

Founded in 2014 by former composter Sebastian Jaeger and software developer Chris Young, Filmstro attempts to undo the complicated thorny issue of music rights for advertisers by providing a dynamic library of music which can be easily customised dependent on themes and other characteristics such as momentum and depth.

The startup is hoping to capture the booming market in online video content amid a $16bn increase in video ad-spend since 2010 according to the World Advertising Research Centre.

Following the backing, Sebastian Jaeger was hopeful about the benefits of working with Iris, a creative network which has 14 offices around the world.

He said: “iris understand this industry intimately, and really get the problems we’re trying to solve. We can feel their support for our mission of democratising music production for the creative media industry, whilst rewarding composers at the same time.”

David Caygill, Managing Director of The iris Nursery added: “We’ve been building strong links with smart startups and early stage companies since 2013, these collaborations help drive innovation at pace for both our agency and our clients.

“When we work with a company as good as Filmstro it just makes sense to invest - it demonstrates our long-term commitment and helps to align our ambitions. The Filmstro team are passionate and talented, and their product solves a real problem elegantly.”