Hoopr Secures Pre-Series A Funding to Scale India’s Music Licensing Ecosystem

The Indian digital content landscape is undergoing a seismic shift, driven by a massive surge in short-form video and influencer marketing. At the heart of this transformation is the challenge of music rights—a traditionally opaque and fragmented sector. Hoopr’s latest funding round from The Chennai Angels, following support from Inflection Point Ventures and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), signals a maturing market for specialized adtech and martech solutions that bridge the gap between artists and content creators. This Pre-Series A round, though undisclosed in its total amount, represents a critical vote of confidence in Hoopr’s ability to solve the copyright dilemma for India’s burgeoning creator economy.

Hoopr has strategically bifurcated its offering into a twin-engine ecosystem. The primary Hoopr platform caters to the long tail of the creator economy, providing over 400,000 creators—including high-profile names like Flying Beast and Ranveer Brar—with copyright-safe tracks for YouTube and Instagram. Meanwhile, Hoopr Smash targets the enterprise segment, offering a streamlined path for brands like Marico, ITC, and Myntra to license high-value Bollywood music. This dual approach addresses the specific needs of both individual influencers and large-scale corporate marketing departments, effectively professionalizing the sync licensing space in India. By aggregating catalogs from over 21 leading Indian labels, including YRF and Universal Music Group (UMG), Hoopr has positioned itself as the single largest platform for licensing Bollywood and Indian music.

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The primary Hoopr platform caters to the long tail of the creator economy, providing over 400,000 creators—including high-profile names like Flying Beast and Ranveer Brar—with copyright-safe tracks for YouTube and Instagram.

The partnership with Universal Music Group for the Artist Accelerator program is particularly noteworthy. By creating original music specifically for sync licensing, Hoopr is not just a middleman but a content incubator. This aligns with global trends where platforms like Epidemic Sound or Artlist have become essential tools for the modern marketer. Furthermore, the integration with Adobe and the deal with the Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS) provide Hoopr with the institutional backing and technical integration necessary to become the industry standard. For Adobe users, this partnership likely means smoother workflows for content creators who need high-quality, legally cleared music directly within their editing suites.

From an adtech perspective, Hoopr’s proprietary copyright detection system is a critical differentiator. As platforms like Meta and YouTube tighten their enforcement of intellectual property, brands and creators face significant legal and financial risks from unauthorized music use. Hoopr’s technology ensures that revenue sharing is transparent and automated, reducing friction in the creative process. The recent placement of a title track in a Jio Studios production demonstrates that Hoopr is moving beyond background tracks into high-stakes media production, further validating its business model. This move into film and television sync licensing opens up a high-margin revenue stream that complements its subscription-based creator model.

Looking ahead, the investment from The Chennai Angels will likely be used to further refine these AI-driven detection tools and expand the platform's reach into international markets. As Indian content continues to find a global audience, the demand for authentic, licensed Indian music will only grow. Hoopr’s ability to provide a one-stop shop for both creators and enterprise brands puts it in a unique position to dominate the intersection of music, technology, and marketing in South Asia. Marketers should watch for further integrations with major social platforms and creative software, as Hoopr seeks to become the default infrastructure for music in the digital age.