July 10, 2023No Comments

Karta secures investment from pioneers across the music, gaming and sports industries

London, UK - July 2023. Karta, an award-winning Metaverse studio pioneering the world of in-game experiential marketing, has secured investment from industry pioneers across the music, gaming, sports and finance worlds after a successful funding round.

Launched as a startup in 2021 by music industry veteran Tony Barnes and Fnatic’s ex-Head of Events Erik Londré, Karta makes the metaverse accessible and effective for musicians, brands and sports rights-holders. In just two years, the studio has delivered a number of successful projects on Roblox, Fortnite for the likes of Amazon Music, Unilever’s Sunsilk and most recently K-pop megastar girl group TWICE.

Collectively, these campaigns have reached over 100m young people through Karta’s unique approach to creating virtual experiences, earning the startup several industry awards and a recent shortlist in the Health & Wellness category at Cannes Lion Awards, for its work with Ronald McDonald House. The new investment now provides a springboard for Karta, enabling it to service the booming demand for these virtual worlds.

The recent funding round was led by venture capital firm GameTech Ventures and includes names from the music sector including Amy Thomson. Thomson, a trailblazing artist manager and ex-Chief Catalog Officer to Hipgnosis, chose to invest after recognising Karta’s unique offering of building experiences with a marketer’s mindset, as well as its vision for brands and artists to harness the metaverse as a powerful marketing tool. 

Speaking on the investment, Partner at GameTech Ventures Lachlan Gowrie-Smith said: “Erik, Tony and the team at Karta are building the very best brand experiences on leading gaming platforms with consistently exceptional results. By adopting a partnership mindset with a long-term view and a focus on rich experiences and fun for communities of fans, they are pioneering a new medium of deep engagement with consumers. With an experienced and talented team, we’re delighted to be joining their journey with this investment”.

The recent launch of the hugely successful TWICE Square - a fan experience built for K-pop megastars TWICE, through a partnership with Republic Records and JYP Management, has demonstrated Karta’s award-winning prowess for building long-term music metaverse activations for big name artists. TWICE Square is the current #1 music experience in Roblox and the third most popular branded experience overall on the platform in 2023.

Amy Thomson, added: “It was obvious as we navigate the way people engage with music and everyday life now in the metaverse to back a company who are not only building the best spaces I’ve seen there but also planning innovation I think will evolve this into a place we can’t live without”.

The recent funding round also drew support from a range of other high-profile investors across gaming, sports, entertainment and finance industries including global entertainment company Toikido, CEO of Sports Loft Charlie Greenwood, Chairman of UK Finance Robert Wigley, Powster Founder and CEO Ste Thompson and venture studio Big Ideas Group.


Erik Londré, CEO of Karta, said: “We’re incredibly grateful for the backing and support received so far from some of the most well-respected figures in the industries we work with. They, like us, know the metaverse is the real deal and is delivering real word results that matter. The investment raised is going to be crucial in helping us service the growing demand for metaverse experiences by investing in our team, platform and regional expansions.”

April 20, 2023No Comments

Amazon Music One Take wins another Campaign Media Award in 2023: Media & Entertainment

The Metaverse x Influence Marketing cross-over campaign, Amazon Music One Take took home a second Campaign Media Award 2023 for the Best Use of Experiential Award. Created in collaboration with Karta, Initiative and Livewire, the Youtube streamed series drew in the biggest viewership that Amazon Music had ever experienced.

The feedback received from the judges of this year's Campaign Media commented that Amazon Music One Take was “Very clever, a unique idea well executed and feels very authentic. It’s a really successful repositioning of the brand.” But according to Campaign, this wasn't always the case. 'For a brand previously regarded as about as cool as dad dancing, the project reached more than 2.8 million Gen Zs and saw 186,000 streamed over 16,000 hours. It featured earned editorial across NME and Music Ally and saw Amazon Music go from the status of unknown busker to top of the charts.'


To read the case study, click here.

To read the full award entry, click here.

April 20, 2023No Comments

Amazon Music One Take – Campaign Media Awards winners 2023: Best Use of Experiential

The Metaverse x Influence Marketing cross-over campaign, Amazon Music One Take took home the Best Use of Experiential Award at 2023's Campaign Media. Created in collaboration with Karta, Initiative and Livewire, the Youtube streamed series drew in the biggest viewership that Amazon Music had ever experienced.

Even though one of the judges remarked that the campaign "is so cool”, Campaign dived in a little deeper as to why this sentiment was relevant:

But for Amazon Music it wasn’t always the case. The majority of Gen Z weren’t aware of Amazon Music, and those that were likened the brand to dad dancing rather than a dance sensation.

In order to put itself on the map for this demographic, Amazon Music had to dive into the new frontier of music culture: gaming. The most coveted moments in music are often live. Gaming at its most social is played and streamed live. And Amazon has the biggest live platform with Twitch, so it was a case of linking these three things together to put Amazon Music at the forefront of youth culture. 

With 88% of Gen Z individuals gaming weekly, the campaign set to work creating three playable custom maps within online game Fortnite – and its community of 350 million users – all inspired by the UK music scene.


To read the case study, click here.

To read the full award entry, click here.

March 17, 2023No Comments

Latest Music Industry Hires: Warner Chappell, Arista, 300 Entertainment, BMI, Muserk, and More

Here’s a recap of recent music industry hires and in-house promotions as of March 17th, 2023.

BMI

Nine-year Broadcast Music, Inc. team member John Coletta has been promoted to SVP and managing director, international.

Karta

Metaverse studio Karta, which launched in 2021, has officially announced former Hipgnosis and EMI exec Tony Barnes as its co-founder.

Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG)

Former BMI VP of creative for Europe Shirin Foroutan has joined UMPG as SVP and GM for Europe, succeeding GM of European operations Simon Baker, who’s set to “continue at the company in a senior management capacity.”

Additionally, 21-year team member Jonas Wikström is succeeding Martin Ingeström (who will retire in June) to become Universal Music Publishing Scandinavia’s MD of the Nordics.

Warner Music

Following the departure of Warner Music CEO Stephen Cooper, EVP and CFO Eric Levin has announced that he’ll retire later this year.

SoundCloud

SoundCloud president Eliah Seton has replaced Michael Weissman as the music-sharing platform’s CEO; Weissman just recently joined Wade Davis’ ForgeLight VC as a partner.


To read the full article, click here.

March 15, 2023No Comments

Tony Barnes Launches Music Artists With Karta Metaverse Studios

Metaverse studios Karta on Tuesday announced ex-Virgin EMI Records senior director and music industry veteran Tony Barnes as its co-founder. Digital marketing pioneer will help the company to become leader in Metaverse ad virtual world field.

What is the doer?

Karta was founded in 2021 by Tony Barnes and de facto CEO Eric Londre. The startup helps brands, artists and sports teams connect with audiences across video games and virtual worlds. In short, Karta’s main goal is to make the Metaverse accessible and effective for all brands across all platforms.

Karta successfully worked on creating experiences for big brands in Roblox, and Fortnite. These included Amazon Music, Fnatic, Unilever, and Ronald McDonald House. Similarly, the company recently created the first persistent fan hub on Roblox for female K-pop megastar Twice.

Who is Tony Barnes?

Tony Barnes is considered a digital marketing pioneer with 18 years in the music industry. He was one of the first to understand the importance of streaming platforms. He was one of the first to introduce influencer marketing for music campaigns. In addition, he is a pioneer in the use of TikTok for marketing campaigns.

He held digital positions at Universal Music, Virgin EMI and Hipgnosis. As such he worked with hundreds of major artists such as Queen, Katy Perry, Sir Elton John and Shakira, as well as dance music legends Avicii, David Guetta, Tiësto and Swedish House Mafia.


To read the full article, click here.

March 15, 2023No Comments

Hipgnosis Exec Tony Barnes named as co-founder of metaverse start-up, Karta

Karta, a metaverse studio that offers in-game experiential marketing for musicians, brands and sports teams, named Hipgnosis executive Tony Barnes as a co-founder alongside CEO Erik Londré.

The pair launched London-based Karta in July 2021. The startup says it aims to make the metaverse accessible and effective for brands across all platforms.

Since launching nearly two years ago, Karta has delivered projects across Roblox and Fortnite for Amazon Music, Fnatic, Unilever and Ronald McDonald House.

“We develop strategies to turn them into powerful platforms for your message. Use them for product launches, brand experiences, influencer activations, virtual product sales and more,” Karta says on its website.

The startup claims to have built “the first persistent fan hub” on Roblox for female K-Pop megastars TWICE in partnership with their label, JYP Entertainment, Republic Records and Universal Music Group.


To read the full article, click here.

March 14, 2023No Comments

Tony Barnes announced as co-founder of metaverse studio, Karta

New 'metaverse studio' co-founded by ex-Virgin EMI Records executive.

  • Music industry pioneer, Tony Barnes, is helping to launch music artists and brands into the metaverse 
  • Karta is making the metaverse accessible and effective for artists and labels

Karta, a fast-growing metaverse studio pioneering the world of in-game experiential marketing for musicians, brands and sports teams, has announced ex-Virgin EMI Records senior director and music industry veteran Tony Barnes as its co-founder.

Founded in 2021 by Barnes and CEO Erik Londré, Karta helps connect brands with billions of people that inhabit the world’s most popular video games and virtual worlds. The startup is on a mission to make the metaverse accessible and effective for all brands across all platforms. Since its launch, Karta has delivered successful projects across Roblox and Fortnite for the likes of Amazon Music, Fnatic, Unilever and Ronald McDonald House. Karta recently built the first persistent fan hub on Roblox for female K-Pop megastars TWICE, in collaboration with JYP Entertainment, Republic Records and Universal Music Group.

Hailing from a stellar 18-year career in music, Barnes is widely regarded as a digital-marketing pioneer. As an early torchbearer for streaming platforms, Tony devised award-winning digital strategies, introduced influencer marketing to music campaigns and was among the first music execs to collaborate with and champion Tiktok. Rising to senior digital positions at Universal Music, Virgin EMI and Hipgnosis, he’s worked on campaigns for hundreds of artists including global superstars Queen, Katy Perry, Sir Elton John, Shakira, Kanye West, Florence & The Machine and Halsey, as well as dance music legends Avicii, David Guetta, Tiesto and Eric Prydz. He also helped to launch the careers of artists such as Emeli Sande, Jonas Blue and James Bay, and played a key role in the success of Swedish House Mafia. Furthermore, Tony is a forward-thinker who chaired the 2020 Brit Awards Digital Committee which smashed previous online records and brokered the first deal between Tiktok and the BRITs, heavily featuring Lewis Capaldi.

To read the full article, click here.

March 14, 2023No Comments

Tony Barnes announced as co-founder of metaverse studio, Karta

Music industry pioneer, Tony Barnes, is helping to launch music artists and brands into the metaverse. Karta is making the metaverse accessible and effective for artists and labels.

London, UK - March 2023 Karta, a fast-growing metaverse studio pioneering the world of in-game experiential marketing for musicians, brands and sports teams, has announced ex-Virgin EMI Records senior director and music industry veteran Tony Barnes as its co-founder.

Founded in 2021 by Barnes and CEO Erik Londré, Karta helps connect brands with billions of people that inhabit the world’s most popular video games and virtual worlds. The startup is on a mission to make the metaverse accessible and effective for all brands across all platforms. Since its launch, Karta has delivered successful projects across Roblox and Fortnite for the likes of Amazon Music, Fnatic, Unilever and Ronald McDonald House. Karta recently built the first persistent fan hub on Roblox for female K-Pop megastars TWICE, in collaboration with JYP Entertainment, Republic Records and Universal Music Group.

Hailing from a stellar 18-year career in music, Barnes is widely regarded as a digital-marketing pioneer. As an early torchbearer for streaming platforms, Tony devised award-winning digital strategies, introduced influencer marketing to music campaigns and was among the first music execs to collaborate with and champion Tiktok. Rising to senior digital positions at Universal Music, Virgin EMI and Hipgnosis, he’s worked on campaigns for hundreds of artists including global superstars Queen, Katy Perry, Sir Elton John, Shakira, Kanye West, Florence & The Machine and Halsey, as well as dance music legends Avicii, David Guetta, Tiesto and Eric Prydz. He also helped to launch the careers of artists such as Emeli Sande, Jonas Blue and James Bay, and played a key role in the success of Swedish House Mafia. Furthermore, Tony is a forward-thinker who chaired the 2020 Brit Awards Digital Committee which smashed previous online records and brokered the first deal between Tiktok and the BRITs, heavily featuring Lewis Capaldi.

To read the full article, click here.

March 9, 2023No Comments

J-Hope TikTok Challenge, Jisoo’s Solo Album Details, TWICE Roblox Debut & More

BTS’ J-Hope’s new track with J. Cole has sparked a new TikTok challenge, BlackPink's Jisoo reveals more about her highly anticipated upcoming solo project, and the ladies of TWICE are getting their own world on Roblox. We preview both our interviews with Feid and Curren$y.

To watch the video, click here.

March 9, 2023No Comments

TWICE to launch their own virtual world in ‘Roblox’

K-pop girl group TWICE are headed to the online game platform Roblox for the launch of their very own virtual world.

Called TWICE Squarethe new online world takes strong inspiration from the music video of the girl group’s 2018 single ‘Yes Or Yes’. Here, fans will be able to play two mini-games: an escape room called ‘Set Me Free’ – also the title of their upcoming single – and a timed trivia challenge.

The virtual world will also allow fans to trade, collect and buy items inspired by the girl group’s looks. These include plushies, digital clothing and accessories, as well as emotes that are based on TWICE’s various popular dances.

He also said the girl group plan to release new content for TWICE Square throughout the year, alongside virtual visits by the members themselves. “They’re hoping that their fans treat the space as a hangout and an information source for all things TWICE,” he added.

To read the full article, click here.