What Imagesound does

Imagesound is a privately held UK-headquartered in-store music, media, and audio-visual solutions provider founded in 1998 in Chesterfield, operating under Imagesound Ltd alongside the Musicstyling subsidiary. The company serves more than 103,000 locations across 168 countries with a 360-degree service portfolio spanning music consultancy and profiling, royalty-free and licensed background music, brand and retail radio, in-store messaging, content creation, motion graphics, video production, digital signage, professional AV system design and installation, and studio services (podcasts, voiceovers, radio advertising). Its technology stack centers on the proprietary IMS (Imagesound Management System)—a bespoke platform developed in-house that schedules and distributes multi-media content to tens of thousands of players globally and earned a Queen's Award for Innovation in 2022—supplemented by the Dashboard web-based CMS, the Discover Music control solution, Download Player hardware with remote management, and GPS-based prayer time programming for Ramadan playlists. Operations span 11 offices across the UK (Chesterfield, London, Leeds), the Americas (Los Angeles, Miami, Vancouver), Europe (Hamburg via Radiopark partnership), the Middle East (Dubai), and Asia-Pacific (Shanghai, Hong Kong, Sydney), with 24/7 global support.

The business model combines recurring subscription-style background music services with one-time AV hardware sales and installation, project-based creative services, managed digital signage solutions, and supplier-funded advertising revenue generated through Co-op Radio (operated via a partnership with Threefold Media Sales Agency). Pricing is quote-based and tiered by venue count and service scope, with annual billing for subscription components. Go-to-market is sales-led through dedicated account managers and regional consultants in territories including Tokyo, Bangkok, Bali, Delhi, Dubai, Casablanca, London, Vancouver, New York, and Sydney. Customers are predominantly enterprise-scale retail, hospitality, QSR, fashion, leisure, and travel brands; named logos include Tesco (3,000+ stores), Co-op (2,600 stores), Spar (1,800 stores), Poundland (850+), KFC (900+ sites), Next (600+ outlets), TUI (450+ stores plus cruise ship installations), Dunelm, Domino's, Vodafone, Pizza Hut, Caffè Nero, Fred Perry, Hamleys, David Lloyd, Stonegate Pubs, Barnardos, Nisa, Poundstretcher, Gina Tricot, hub by Premier Inn, Ocean Cruises, and Center Parcs (Europe's largest single AV installation with 563 speakers and 17+ miles of cable). The company has received two Queen's Awards for Enterprise in 2022 (Innovation and International Trade) and is backed by private equity investor ECI Partners since 2016, following an earlier Vespa Capital investment in 2011.

Name

Imagesound

Legal name

Imagesound Ltd

Website

https://imagesound.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Imagesound is a UK-founded in-store music and media company serving 103,000+ locations across 168 countries, providing curated background music, digital signage, AV installation, and creative services to enterprise retail, hospitality, QSR, and travel brands via its proprietary IMS platform and 11 global offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

In-Store Music & Audio Visual Services

NAICS

Broadcasting and Content Providers (516), Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries (512)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Music & Audio Streaming Platforms (BPAMAJAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Media Asset Management (MAM) Platforms (MPAHAGAA)

Keywords

• In-store background music
• Music curation services
• Digital signage solutions
• AV installation services
• Music licensing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Chesterfield

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Background Music Services: Recurring subscription-style service providing curated background music for retail, hospitality, and other commercial environments. Music is delivered via proprietary players with scheduled updates.
2. AV Installation & Equipment: One-time installation services for audio visual systems including sound systems, speakers, and digital signage hardware. Includes ongoing maintenance and support.
3. Creative Services: In-house studio producing retail radio, messaging, video, motion graphics, and audio content creation for brands
4. Digital Signage Solutions: On-screen media solutions including signage, posters, menu boards, 3D animation and digital screens with content management
5. In-Store Radio Advertising: Co-op Radio generates revenue through supplier funded advertising led by Threefold Media Sales Agency

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Imagesound provides human-curated in-store background music, music profiling, and music consultancy for retail, hospitality, and commercial brands globally. It complements this with digital signage solutions, content creation, video production, and AV installation services, scheduling and distributing all multimedia content through its proprietary IMS (Imagesound Management System) to tens of thousands of Download Players in 160+ countries.

Product overview

Imagesound is a comprehensive in-store music and audiovisual experience company offering a multi-service platform that combines music curation, creative media production, technology solutions, and AV installation services. The core offering centers on their music profiling and consultancy services delivered by real-life music specialists, supported by proprietary technology platforms including the IMS (Imagesound Management System) for scheduling and distribution, Dashboard CMS for content management, and Discover Music for audio control. The product portfolio spans: (1) Music Services - music consultancy, profiling, royalty-free music, and music licensing; (2) Creative Services - brand radio, messaging, content creation, motion graphics, and video production; (3) Technology Products - Download Player hardware, Download Player Remote, Dashboard CMS, Discover Music, and Digital Signage solutions; (4) AV Installation - professional audiovisual system design and installation; (5) Studio Services - studio hire, podcasts, radio advertising, audio messaging, and voiceovers. Everything is produced in-house enabling personal, integrated service delivery. The company operates across 168 countries serving over 103,000 locations with 24/7 support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• UK's most listened to radio station with 20 million weekly listeners (Co-op Radio)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers32 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Threefold Media Sales AgencycoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2018Threefold Media Sales Agency handles supplier funded advertising for Co-op Radio, the UK's most listened to radio station reaching 20 million customers weekly. This partnership generates revenue through advertising while delivering content to Co-op colleagues.

Scale indicators16 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights8 records

Direct peers

• PlayNetwork: PlayNetwork provides curated in-store music, video, and digital signage for global retail and hospitality brands. Closely comparable to Imagesound in customer profile (multi-location enterprise retailers), service breadth (music + media + AV), and global delivery model.
• Soundtrack Your Brand: Spotify-backed B2B background music platform serving retail, hospitality, and fitness brands. Competes directly with Imagesound on music curation for commercial venues, differentiated by an app-based, lower-cost software-only delivery model versus Imagesound's hardware-heavy approach.
• Rockbot: Rockbot provides licensed background music and customer-engagement media for restaurants, retail, hotels, and fitness brands via a cloud-based platform. Competes directly with Imagesound in QSR, hospitality, and fitness verticals.
• Mood Media: Mood Media (formerly Muzak) is the largest direct competitor in commercial background music and in-store media, serving retail, hospitality, and QSR brands globally with curated music, digital signage, and AV solutions. Operates an analogous hardware-plus-content subscription model to Imagesound.
• Cloud Cover Music: Cloud-based commercial background music service targeting small and mid-market businesses across retail, restaurants, and hospitality. A direct competitor at the lower end of the market, competing on price and simplicity rather than premium human curation.

Broad incumbents

• Stingray Digital: Canadian music, media, and technology company providing commercial music services (including in-store audio and digital signage) as part of a broader portfolio spanning TV, digital signage, and karaoke. Overlaps with Imagesound in B2B commercial music delivery.
• SiriusXM for Business: SiriusXM's commercial music division delivers licensed background music for retail, hospitality, and healthcare businesses. A broader incumbent with overlap in commercial audio services, leveraging SiriusXM's consumer satellite-radio scale and content library.
• Spotify (Business / Retail offering): While primarily a consumer music streamer, Spotify's B2B arm (anchored by Soundtrack Your Brand) competes in commercial background music. Represents the broadest incumbent threat as Spotify pushes further into in-store and hospitality audio.

Others

• TouchTunes: Provider of jukebox and interactive music solutions for bars, restaurants, and hospitality venues. Adjacent rather than directly competitive with Imagesound, but operates in the same in-venue audio ecosystem with a different business model (pay-per-play).

Emerging players

• Qsic: Australian-headquartered in-store audio and advertising platform for grocery and convenience retail. Direct overlap in supermarket in-store radio (comparable to Co-op Radio) and supplier-funded advertising model, though with a more regional APAC focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/imagesound
• Facebookfacebook.com/imagesoundplc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/imagesound
• Instagraminstagram.com/imagesound

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A4 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Imagesound