US-based entertainment royalties collection service Stem Disintermedia has secured $8m in a series A round co-led by corporate-backed investment partnership Evolution Media, TechCrunch reported yesterday.
Evolution, a joint venture by talent agency CAA, film producer Participant Media and private equity group TPG, co-led the round with venture capital firm Aspect Ventures, while VC firm Upfront Ventures and undisclosed existing investors also participated.
Stem tracks and manages royalty payments for musicians across a range of areas, organising a traditionally complex process that involves different rates from a variety of sources which end up being distributed to several people at once.
The company had reportedly raised $4.5m in seed capital from music management agency Three Six Zero Group and BBG Ventures, a subsidiary of online media company AOL, as well as Upfront Ventures, Vayner Capital, Ludlow Ventures and various angel investors in April 2016.
Stem subsequently added $4.5m from Upfront Ventures and angel investor Scooter Braun in February this year, though it is unclear whether that funding simply represented the first close of the series A round.