Third Side Music

What Third Side Music does

Third Side Music Inc. is a fully independent music publishing company founded in 2005 and headquartered in Montreal with a second office in Los Angeles. The company represents approximately 70,000 music titles spanning contemporary artists and legacy catalogs across multiple genres and territories, and serves recording artists and songwriters alongside buyers of music for film, television, advertising, and video games.

The firm's core offerings are organized around four service lines: Sync Licensing (pitching and placing music in film, TV, ads, and games, with fees negotiated per placement), Rights Management and Publishing Administration (copyright registration, royalty collection, transparent accounting for represented writers), Creative Services (co-writes, work-for-hire, sampling, scoring, and A&R direction), and an Artist Roster plus catalog partnerships (e.g., Clyde Otis Music Group, Ninja Tune, Studio One/Jam Rec, Tru Thoughts, UFC). Named placements cover Nike, Adidas, Apple, Netflix, Chevrolet, Nissan, Dior, Balmain, EA Sports, and Ubisoft, indicating enterprise demand-side traction.

The technology layer is built on third-party infrastructure: Music Maestro powers royalty accounting, a Vistex-powered Royalties Portal provides artist-facing access to royalty statements, and Campaign Monitor handles client email communications. The business operates on a 100% independent ownership basis with no third-party investors, generating revenue primarily through negotiated sync licensing fees and recurring publishing administration commissions.

Name

Third Side Music

Legal name

Third Side Music Inc.

Website

https://thirdsidemusic.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Third Side Music is an independent music publishing company representing 70,000+ titles and 35+ artists, providing sync licensing, copyright administration, creative services, and royalty accounting to film, TV, advertising, video game, and recording artist clients from Montreal and Los Angeles.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Music Publishing & Sync Licensing

NAICS

Music Publishers (512230), Music Publishers (51223)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Distribution (7822)

akta.pro primary industry

Brand Partnerships & Music Placement Services (Non-Exclusive Brand Deals) (MPAIALAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Songwriting & Composition (Topliners, Co-writers, Camps) (MPAIABAA), Custom Music & Original Score/Composition (MPAIALAD), Game Music Licensing & Interactive/Adaptive Music Providers (MPAIALAI), Music Legal Services (Artist/Label/Publishing) (MPAIAGAE)

Keywords

• Music publishing services
• Sync licensing agency
• Music rights management
• Copyright administration
• Music supervision licensing

Headquarters

HQ city

Montréal

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Sync Licensing: Primary revenue stream from licensing music for use in film, TV, advertising, video games, and other media. Fees are negotiated per placement with the company focusing on maximizing fees and securing favorable terms.
2. Publishing Administration: Rights management and copyright administration for artists, including detailed royalty accounting and transparent reporting to represented writers.
3. Creative Services: Services including co-writes, work-for-hire placements, sampling opportunities, scoring deals, and A&R direction that generate additional revenue streams.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Third Side Music is an independent global music publisher that licenses music from its roster of contemporary artists and legacy catalogs for placement in film, television, advertising, and video games. The company also provides rights management, copyright administration, and creative services such as co-writes, work-for-hire placements, sampling opportunities, scoring, and A&R direction for represented artists and songwriters.

Product overview

Third Side Music is a fully independent global music publishing company offering a unified suite of services centered on sync licensing, rights management, creative services, and publishing administration. The core offerings include Sync Licensing (placing music in film, TV, advertising, and video games), Rights Management (copyright administration), Creative Services (co-writes, work-for-hire, sampling, scoring, A&R), and Publishing Administration with transparent royalty accounting. Supporting these are the Royalties Portal (artist-facing platform for accessing statements), the Artist Roster (representation of contemporary and legacy artists), and Represented Catalogs (extensive catalog partnerships with various territorial scopes). The company represents over 70,000 titles across multiple catalog partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sync Licensing Music synchronization licensing service enabling placement of music in film, television, advertising, and video games for music supervisors, brands, agencies, and game developers.
• Rights Management Copyright administration and rights management service for music catalogs, handling registration, tracking, and enforcement on behalf of represented artists and songwriters.
• Creative Services Creative support including co-writes, work-for-hire placements, sampling opportunities, scoring projects, and A&R direction for represented artists.
• Publishing Administration Comprehensive music publishing administration with detailed and transparent royalty accounting for over 70,000 represented titles across contemporary artists and legacy catalogs.
• Royalties Portal Artist-facing web portal for accessing royalty statements and related information, powered by Vistex technology, enabling transparent client access to royalty data.

Quantifiable outcome

• 124% increase in streams for Angine de Poitrine the week their second album dropped
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Atlantic OutpostminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 May 2026War and Treaty has entered into a pact with Atlantic Outpost. While not directly a TSM partnership, this indicates industry relationships in the publishing space.
• Trust RecordsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 December 2025Partnership with Trust Records for Bad Brains catalog and other rights administration. Bad Brains entered into a partnership with Trust Records covering their catalog and other rights, with Third Side Music involved in the publishing administration.
• VistexcoreTechnology or IntegrationVistex powers the Third Side Music Portal for artist royalty management and client access. The portal is powered by Vistex Inc. and serves as the primary interface for artists to access their royalty information.
• Music MaestrocoreTechnology or IntegrationRoyalty system database used for royalty statements and related information. Music Maestro is the backend system for copyright administration and royalty tracking.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Round Hill Music:
• Kobalt Music Group: Kobalt is a leading independent music publisher and rights management company focused on technology-enabled royalty collection and transparent reporting for artists. It directly competes with Third Side Music in publishing administration and sync licensing, with overlapping target customers (mid-career artists and songwriters seeking alternatives to major publishers).
• Primary Wave Music Publishing: Primary Wave is an independent music publisher and talent management company that acquires and administers catalogs of legacy and contemporary artists, with significant sync licensing operations. It directly competes with TSM for both artist signings and sync placements, particularly in advertising and film/TV.
• Spirit Music Group: Spirit Music Group is an independent music publishing company focused on managing and acquiring rights to high-value song catalogs, with active sync licensing operations across film, TV, and advertising. It competes with Third Side Music for premium sync placements and represents a similar profile of legacy and contemporary catalog assets.
• APM Music: APM Music is a leading independent music library representing over one million tracks for licensing in film, TV, advertising, and digital media. While focused on production music rather than contemporary songwriter representation, APM competes with Third Side Music in the same sync licensing market for advertising and entertainment placements.
• Position Music: Position Music is an independent music publishing and sync licensing company representing over 100,000 songs and master recordings for placement in film, TV, advertising, and video games. It is highly comparable to Third Side Music given the overlapping focus on sync licensing across the same end markets and similar boutique operating model.
• The Royalty Network:

Broad incumbents

• Concord Music Publishing: Concord is a large independent music publisher owning or administering rights to over one million copyrighted compositions across a wide range of genres and historical periods. It competes with TSM in sync licensing for film, TV, and advertising, with significantly greater catalog scale and back-catalog depth.
• peermusic: peermusic is one of the largest independently owned music publishers in the world, representing over 500,000 titles with global operations across 30+ countries. It competes with TSM in sync licensing and publishing administration, with materially greater international infrastructure and a longer operating history.
• BMG Rights Management: BMG is one of the world's largest independent music publishers representing millions of songs across thousands of artists. It competes directly with Third Side Music in sync licensing and publishing administration but operates at materially greater scale with global offices, broader catalog depth, and significant capital for catalog acquisitions.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/tsmsayswhat
• Facebookfacebook.com/tsmsync
• Instagraminstagram.com/tsmsayswhat

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Third Side Music