New ad platform Into-it launches with record labels, artists, venues and media partners

15 June 2022 - Press release

15^th June sees the launch of a new business on a mission to connect music companies with fans who intend to buy their products.

Beta-testers from the American and British music, advertising and technology industries will download Into-it's Chrome browser extension, reveal the musical genres and artists they're into then get the ads they asked for on The Independent website. 

Record labels who have signed up for the Into-it beta test include major labels EMI and Columbia Records and independents Full Time Hobby, Domino, and Brownswood Recordings. Recently restored music venue KOKO and pioneering merchandise company Terrible* have also joined the beta test, which is powered by technology company Xandr and media partner The Independent. 

The artists participating in the beta test include Franz Ferdinand, Silverbacks, George Ezra, Bastille, Dana Gavanski, Big Thief, Overmono, Kokoroko, Chase & Status, Cat Burns and Mulatu Astatke.

"At Into-it, we're on a mission to give American and British music fans the opportunity to curate their online advertising experience by simply letting us know the genres and the artists they're into," says Lee Henshaw, founder of Into-it. "This beta test allows us to showcase our technology to the industry before our commercial launch in the autumn."

Oli Wheatley, Trading Director at The Independent, comments: "We are looking forward to being part of Into-It's beta test. At The Independent, we are absolutely committed to offering value and effectiveness through innovation to our customers and improving user experience wherever possible - so we're excited to see what this partnership brings.”

Nigel Adams, Founder at Full Time Hobby, comments: "Into-it is a game-changer for the music industry because it gives us access to a data set powered by user intention, helping us build direct relationships with fans.”

The Into-it advisory board comprises Lucky Generals founder and Creative Director Danny Brooke-Taylor, prominent American digital rights activist and entrepreneur Joyce Searls, Dino Myers-Lamptey founder of The Barber Shop and Saher Sidhom, founder of Hackmasters. 

Into-its founder, the British internet entrepreneur Lee Henshaw, has launched, grown and sold multi-million-pound digital marketing agencies. He founded the online PR agency Way to Blue in 1999 and the programmatic advertising agency Silence Media in 2009. He is also the author of an Oasis biography and the novel Queer Fish in God's Waiting Room, now a short film for 2022 directed by Adrian Pasdar. In addition, he has written about entertainment and technology for The Guardian, The Times and The Daily Telegraph.