Ola Sars is reshaping the music landscape with his mission to ensure fair compensation for artists in commercial spaces.
Ola Sars has long been a key figure at the crossroads of music and technology, but his latest venture may have the most significant impact yet. As the founder of Soundtrack Technologies, he leads one of the largest business-to-business (B2B) music streaming platforms aimed at transforming how music is utilized, licensed, and paid for in commercial settings.
“Soundtrack is a fully licensed music streaming platform built specifically for commercial environments,” Sars explains, highlighting its application in restaurants, gyms, retail chains, and hotels. Unlike consumer streaming services, which cater to personal listening, Soundtrack takes care of the copyright, reporting, and usage requirements involved in playing music in public spaces. “It’s essentially the infrastructure layer that finally brings commercial music use into the streaming era,” he adds.
After contributing to Beats Music and laying the groundwork for Apple Music, Sars identified a significant gap that the industry had overlooked. While consumer streaming services advanced rapidly, the commercial side lagged behind, often relying on outdated systems. Many businesses streamed music illegally without realizing it, risking copyright violations and denying artists rightful revenue.
Sars’ journey in music technology began with Pacemaker, a DJ-centric hardware and software platform that explored early algorithmic recommendation models. This experience not only established his reputation as a proficient founder but also illuminated the challenges posed by technology in the realm of music licensing. “Pacemaker introduced me to licensing and rights complexities,” he recalls, recognizing the disconnect between technological possibilities and existing licensing frameworks.
His work with Beats Music provided insight into the streaming industry, allowing Sars to negotiate with labels, publishers, and artists while witnessing streaming’s transformative potential. However, he quickly noted that the commercial sector remained largely neglected and continued to operate on outdated practices.
The scale of the issue became apparent: businesses around the globe were using personal streaming accounts or outdated background music services, unaware of their copyright infringement. “The market had not produced a modern, accessible solution for them,” Sars explains. Recognizing the financial implications—measured in billions—he felt a responsibility to act.
An early collaboration with Spotify gave birth to Spotify Business, marking the first substantial attempt to formalize commercial streaming. While this partnership demonstrated demand, it also highlighted the complexities involved. “Commercial music use required a dedicated product with different rights, pricing, and reporting than consumer streaming,” he emphasizes.
Ultimately, this realization led to the establishment of Soundtrack Technologies, which is specifically tailored for the commercial sector. Today, Soundtrack stands as the largest fully licensed B2B music streaming service worldwide, operating in 73 countries and servicing renowned brands such as Uniqlo, Dr. Martens, and Four Seasons. The platform grants access to over 100 million tracks, along with tools for businesses to manage playlists across locations, ensuring compliance and fair payments for all creators involved.
The journey to reach this point demanded nearly a decade of meticulous licensing efforts. Sars and his team negotiated thousands of agreements with various stakeholders, tackling fragmented and outdated reporting systems. In numerous regions, royalty distribution relied on outdated methods rather than accurate data. “Aligning stakeholders around standardized reporting and modern licensing terms required substantial education and new technical infrastructure,” he notes.
This experience has shaped Sars’ broader perspective on accountability within the music technology sphere. He believes founders must avoid shortcuts that undermine creator rights, asserting that “from the beginning, Soundtrack was built on the principle that commercial music usage should generate more accurate and transparent royalties for creators.” For him, compliance and detailed reporting are not just ethical choices but essential for sustainable progress.
Sars also emphasizes that music remains undervalued in commercial settings. Many businesses still employ unlicensed or under-licensed music, leaving substantial revenue unrealized for artists, labels, and publishers. He often refers to B2B streaming as a “six-times multiplier,” asserting that properly licensed business accounts can generate five to six times more royalty revenue than standard consumer subscriptions. “When music is played in a business, it reaches many listeners at once,” he explains, “and modern data allows us to track that usage more accurately than ever.”
As artificial intelligence reshapes experience design, Sars views commercial music as a frontier for innovation. Soundtrack now offers AI-driven playlist creation, brand suitability controls, and analytics that allow businesses to treat music as a strategic asset. Companies can align sound with brand identity and customer behavior while ensuring compliance across numerous locations.
For Sars, the mission is straightforward. Streaming has transformed individual music consumption, and now he aims to revolutionize how businesses leverage music. His goal is to cultivate a commercial ecosystem that values creators and cement royalty payments, finally ushering the last major segment of the music industry into the modern era.