Rights Tracker Completes Fundraising

Rights Tracker has completed a fundraising round for an undisclosed sum led by existing investor YFM Group.

Also following their existing investment was the Creative Capital Fund, with two of the company’s management, CFO Paul Cook and Non-exec Chairman, Iolo Jones also investing (the later through TV Everywhere Ltd), alongside an angel investor from the legal profession. The round remains open with further investment expected.

Rights Tracker provides TV production and distribution companies with rights management software that enables them to maximise their international sales across media whilst reducing their administrative costs. The company’s software is also central to the ability of valuing rights based properties in a very dynamic and changing market. Recent client wins include ‘superindies’ All3Media and RDF.

“We’re delighted to have received such strong support from our existing investors,” comments Rights Tracker CEO, Ross Bentley. “The rights management marketplace is becoming more and more complex with more media and distribution outlets. Using spreadsheets and basic databases isn’t enough in this world and this is where our software platform comes in. It’s good to see our hard work in developing the company vindicated both by investors and by major new clients.”

Rights Tracker has established a dominant position in the European TV rights market and has ambitious plans to establish a global online rights marketplace. It has already made moves into new markets such as music, licensing, sports and publishing.

The company is on course to post substantial growth in revenues this year and plans to use the funding to grow into overseas and related markets as well as to complete the development of its next-generation technology.

Rights Are Not Mickey Mouse

The takeover of Marvel by Disney demonstrates how rights are at the very core of long term value in the content industry. Already, Marvel has licenced out many of its star properties (many to Disney rivals), but the thought that Disney now gets paid rights by its competitors must have the Mouse company smiling.

Disney is amongst the world's smartest rights companies - and they are a company that knows that they are about rights, not 'properties' or 'artists'.

The scope to exploit the Marvel back catalog is, undoubtedly, extensive.