Independent consolidation isn’t just about majors buying indies, nor is it just about acquisitions involving labels. Consolidation focused on tech platforms is also a trend in 2026 – and an encouraging one.
The latest example sees Secretly Distribution acquiring tech firm Babel Ops, including its analytics subsidiary Entertainment Intelligence, whose service is being used by more than 55k labels to pick through their data.
Partisan Records, Reservoir Media, Secret City, MNRK and Exceleration are among those clients, but also Secretly Distribution – whose in-house repertoire-management system was built by Babel Ops.
Secretly said that Babel Ops will continue to serve its other clients after the acquisition, which is being presented as a move that strengthens the wider independent community.
“What drew us to Secretly is a genuinely shared ethos: a belief that independence should be supported and strengthened, not absorbed into dominant systems,” said Babel Ops founders Greg Delaney and Erik Gilbert.
“Now, more than ever, if you want to stay independent — and help others stay independent — you must vigorously protect your ability to do business on your own terms, according to your values,” added Secretly boss Darius Van Arman.
“It’s not enough to safeguard independent routes to market; you must have access to market-leading technology that enables you to compete against the largest companies.”
This points to the bigger picture around this deal. Strong independence needs three things: good ears and bold risk-taking when signing artists; financial muscle to grow on your own terms; and a tech stack enabling you to punch above your weight against the biggest industry players.
The first of those defines the independent sector, but the latter two have proved challenging – but there are a number of initiatives underway to crack them, from new providers of finance to mergers and tech-focused acquisitions like this one.
For all the concerns about major-led consolidation in the sector, some indies see working with the majors – joint ventures or distribution partnerships rather than all-out acquisitions – as their pathway too.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source musically.com ’
