Virtual Active: How Rumblefish Gets Music Everywhere—Even on the Exercise Equipment at Your Gym

When most people think licensing, they think terrestrial media or online video. Yet the full spectrum of licensing in the new digital era encompasses an ever-growing world of devices and venues. Micro-licensing pioneers Rumblefish are pushing into this territory, forging new places for more and more artists to license their music, via exclusive partnerships with diverse apps, services, and video production companies.

One of Rumblefish’s exclusive partners is Virtual Active (www.vafitness.com), which produces workout-enhancing videos shot in inspiring places of natural beauty. Designed to boost both enjoyment and athletic performance, Rumblefish music is key in making these videos successful. “The more engaging the music,” notes Virtual Active production manager Marcus Marotto, “the easier it is to get into the zone as you work out.”

Music adds another layer to Virtual Active’s stunning videos, generated by a steadycam operator hoofing it through breathtaking natural sites like the Grand Canyon and the Italian Alps. Then the footage is assembled—“each shot is a special effects shot,” remarks Marotto —using a proprietary process. As the shots become a video, music is a vital element to create different stages in a workout, setting the mood and the pace as a person moves through the scenery.

Rumblefish, with its catalog of millions of tracks and extensive experience matching music to applications, proved invaluable in Virtual Active’s process. “We have a rep at Rumblefish who sends us 100 songs at a time, based off our existing library,” explains Marotto. “We listen and give the tracks—usually electronic or rock music—various ratings, and then choose the best fit.”

The videos and the tracks that help power them are available in bundles for various devices like tablets and phones, but they are also embedded by manufacturers in exercise equipment. The broad range of platforms means Virtual Active videos can boast 4.5 million impressions a month.

Gone are the days where micro-licensing was relegated to just broadcast and tv, As the music licensing space expands to include user-generated content and as the internet becomes as much about things as websites, Rumblefish is constantly looking for opportunities outside the usual platforms. Its partnership with Virtual Active shows just how broad this reach can be.