If imported playlists, announcements or a particular hardware integration are requirements, assess those SoundMachine options directly. If you want an original soundtrack with a simpler daily selection, hear Open Hours and test it in your venue.
Try an original station sound
| Your decision | SoundMachine | Open Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Programme selection | Curated stations and weighted station mixes. | Original stations selected by sound and use; finite ordered collections are a separate choice. |
| Playlist imports | Station support documents imports for Business Premium accounts. | Uses its own recordings; no transfer of another service's songs. |
| Messages and promotions | Advertises scheduled audio messages. | Music scheduling; no promotional-message insertion. |
| Playback equipment | Describes web, mobile and hardware options; verify compatibility and plan. | Use the browser workspace on an awake connected device. |
| Location and stream scope | Pricing FAQ distinguishes added locations and activated zones. | Current plans: one venue and one simultaneous stream. |
| Country/use conditions | Provider licensing information includes territory limits and excluded uses. | Actual country offer defines the supplied catalogue's covered background use and local conditions. |
Do you need a station mix or one clear direction?
SoundMachine describes combining stations with different weights. Its station help also documents a mellow/upbeat variety control on some stations. Those controls may matter if your team wants to fine-tune an existing programme.
Open Hours lets you compare original station directions and choose a programme for the room. Golden hour offers warm soul, Daylight disco a brighter groove and Soft focus a quieter ambient texture. You can change the chosen programme or schedule another one later; that is different from weighting several stations inside a mix.
SoundMachine: music service features ↗SoundMachine: using stations ↗
What happens to your existing playlists?
SoundMachine's station support describes importing playlists from other services with a Business Premium account. Check whether the songs you need and the relevant import option are available under the plan you choose.
Open Hours does not import those songs. Its original recordings provide another soundtrack, not a track-for-track replacement. If recognisable artists are central to your brand, verify them with the provider before comparing the rest of the feature list. If texture and energy matter more, hear the original examples and save directions that fit.
Separate music from messages and equipment
SoundMachine's product page describes scheduled promotional messages and web, mobile and hardware playback options. Treat an announcement workflow or a required sound-system integration as its own buying criterion.
Open Hours supplies music playback and scheduling in the browser workspace. It does not insert promotional announcements or claim support for a particular third-party music device. Use your existing sound output to test the browser player, and preserve any separate paging or emergency procedures. Keep the device awake and the workspace connected during playback.
Choose how the day continues
In Open Hours, a station plays continuously in shuffled order. An ordered collection plays its finite sequence and stops at the end. A long scheduled slot does not make a short collection loop automatically.
Save a weekly venue schedule, use gap music where appropriate and add special-date changes for an unusual day. Enable Follow saved schedule in playback; the public day planner is a draft saved on this device and does not activate music. Test one planned change during service so the next shift knows what to expect.
Compare a complete location setup
SoundMachine's pricing FAQ distinguishes adding a location from activating a zone and discusses third-party equipment that supports multiple zones. Confirm the total for your actual device and simultaneous programmes; the details can depend on the arrangement.
Current Open Hours plans include one venue and one simultaneous stream. Monthly and annual options, the price and the local terms appear after you create an account and choose the venue country. The pricing page lists the countries with paid offers. Ask about another location or separate simultaneous music before assuming it is included.
Keep the licence comparison specific
SoundMachine's licensing page gives territory information and excludes uses such as DJs, live bands, karaoke and other music sources from the described background licences. Read the part that applies to your location and planned use.
The Open Hours offer includes the original catalogue and the covered venue background use. Its local conditions remain authoritative. A switch in provider does not establish permission for your television, event or outside recordings. Compare the actual scope rather than assuming that every service's business-music label means the same thing.
Test the alternative before rebuilding your routine
Start with the public samples. If the music fits, create an Open Hours account using email and password or Google, add the business name and venue country, and review the available plan. Current plans have a seven-day trial with a card and automatic renewal unless cancelled before the trial ends.
Use that trial to test the full programme, conversation level, repetition and daily schedule with your speakers. Keep the import, messaging, hardware and zone requirements on the same checklist. The right alternative is the one that meets those needs with music you want to use; public previews alone do not grant business playback permission.
- Keep SoundMachine's station-mix, import or message workflow on the shortlist when those tools are essential.
- Try Open Hours when an original instrumental catalogue and its browser workflow meet the venue's needs.
- Use current provider pricing and the actual local offer, rather than an unscoped savings percentage.
Put it into practice.
Soundtrack and Open Hours
Compare Soundtrack with Open Hours: familiar artists or original music, playlist imports, daily operation and venue scope. Hear samples and choose what fits.
A Spotify alternative for your business
Explore a Spotify alternative for business: original music, a simple business licence, daily schedules and monthly or annual plans from Open Hours.
Simple licensing
Original music and a direct business-use licence in one subscription. See what royalty-free means, which uses are covered and how your local offer works.
Stations or ordered collections
Understand continuous station playback and finite ordered collections in Open Hours. Choose the right option for a long shift, a selected track or a scheduled slot.
Plan music for special dates
Use a special-date override for different music or a closure in Open Hours. Understand venue timezones, whole-day rules, drafts, overnight carry and saved playback.
Your business
Explore music for cafés, gyms, salons, shops, hotels and more. Find your business’s sound and discover our approach to simple licensing.