How does Soniqo actually run in the venue?

We stream a curated, dayparted programme to your venue's existing audio setup — Sonos, AirPlay, PA, or any standard mixer. No hardware to install, no new accounts for your staff. Staff can adjust volume; everything else is automated and scheduled.

How fast can you go live?

Forty-eight hours from the first call. Day one we do a 30-minute onboarding call. Day one–two we build your sound profile. Day three you're live. Most multi-zone venues are running within the same window.

Standard from Pro tier onwards. Different floors, lobbies, terraces, spas, private rooms all get their own programme, each on its own schedule. All controlled from one dashboard.

What if our internet is unreliable — or goes down completely?

Two answers. Our cloud player already buffers through short drops. For properties where music simply cannot stop — malls, casinos, hotels, live venues — we offer offline playback: a dedicated on-site player with the entire programme stored locally, so the audio path never touches the internet. The connection is only used to sync new tracks and schedules when you're online. Hardware can be supplied and managed by us, or we send the spec and configure yours. Quoted per property.

Our DJ team. Not an algorithm, not a generic playlist library. Every track is handpicked, brand-aligned, and tested against your concept. No explicit tracks, no off-brand surprises.

How often does the music change?

Quarterly refresh on Core, monthly on Pro, custom on Signature. Seasonal modes, event modes, and brand-specific signature evolutions are part of the Pro and Signature tiers. Nothing ever loops the same week twice.

What about the same music across all our locations?

Yes — central group profile with optional local adjustments. The brand sounds consistent across every venue while still respecting venue-specific factors like crowd, hour, season.

Do you handle the new UAE music licence (from 1 December 2026)?

Yes. Under Ministerial Resolution No. 136 of 2026, every UAE restaurant, café, hotel, gym and mall needs an annual music licence from 1 December 2026 — fees from AED 1,500 a year for a small restaurant, fines of up to AED 500,000 without one. For our venues we determine the tariff category, prepare and file the application with the authorised organisation (EMRA or Music Nation), track the renewal, and keep the certificate and track-level documentation inspection-ready — bundled with the music itself. Full breakdown and a fee calculator: soniqo.io/uae-music-licensing/.

What about music licensing?

Handled on our side. PRO and PPL royalties are paid through our system. You stay legally clear without managing any separate accounts or licenses for the music we provide.

Thirty days written notice, any month. No exit fees. We hand back the calendar so you can continue with your previous setup if you want to. First month is treated as a trial — cancel within 30 days, no kill fee, no questions.

Why not just use Spotify Business?

Spotify Business gives you a music library; it does not give you direction. It plays algorithm-based recommendations, includes podcast and sponsor breaks, has no daypart or brand intelligence, and is not insurable as a business audio source. Soniqo is the programme around the music — designed, curated, scheduled, supported.

Seasonal · 22 February & 23 September5 min read

Founding Day and National Day
the Kingdom's two celebrations, in the room.

Twice a year the Kingdom celebrates itself — Founding Day on 22 February, National Day on 23 September — and venues in Riyadh, Jeddah and everywhere between fill with families, flags and a mood that is proud and warm rather than loud. The music should meet it. Most venues either ignore the day or paste a playlist over it; neither sounds like the celebration.

Two days, two charactersDiagnosis

Founding Day (22 February) commemorates the first Saudi state and leans heritage: traditional dress, ardah, historical pride. National Day (23 September) marks unification and is the bigger public celebration — fireworks, crowds, public holiday. Both are family days with long, celebratory evenings, and both call for Saudi and Khaleeji repertoire as genuine presence: traditional and instrumental textures through the day, contemporary Saudi and Khaleeji artists as the evening lifts, national songs at the moments that call for them.

Venues often add live performances for the nights — and every live performance in a restaurant or café is a GEA-permitted activity, applied for weeks in advance. The recorded programme around it should come from a documented source; under the 2026 Copyright Law the inspection powers are real.

What doesn't workCommon failed fixes

A stock 'Saudi songs' playlist for the day

It sounds like a stock playlist. The room can tell.

Treating both days the same

Founding Day is heritage; National Day is celebration. Different arcs.

A live ardah troupe or singer booked without a GEA permit

Live performance needs the permit — plan it with the programme, weeks ahead.

Two arcs, on the calendarThe fix

Build both days into the programme as their own arcs — heritage-leaning for Founding Day, celebratory for National Day — deployed automatically on the date and returned to the venue's own sound after. Permit live acts through GEA in advance; keep the recorded programme documented.

Soniqo programs both occasions for Saudi venues every year, alongside Ramadan and Riyadh Season, with GEA-permit guidance for live nights.

●Founding Day 22 February: heritage register
●National Day 23 September: celebration register, public holiday
●Saudi & Khaleeji repertoire woven through, rising toward the evening
●Live acts: GEA permit, applied for weeks ahead
●Recorded programme: documented source under the 2026 law

From the field · Riyadh

A Boulevard-area restaurant had run National Day on whatever the manager queued. Programmed as an arc — instrumental heritage at lunch, a lift into contemporary Saudi artists, national songs as the fireworks started — the terrace stayed full past midnight, and the operator asked for Founding Day next.

Common questionsFor operators

When are Saudi Founding Day and National Day?

Founding Day is 22 February; National Day is 23 September. Both are public holidays with family-heavy, celebratory service.

What music suits Founding Day versus National Day?

Founding Day leans heritage — traditional and instrumental textures, historical pride. National Day is the bigger celebration — contemporary Saudi and Khaleeji artists rising toward the evening, national songs at the key moments.

Do we need a permit for a live performance on National Day?

Yes — live performances in restaurants and cafés are GEA-permitted activities. Apply weeks in advance.

Built into the calendar

Two celebrations. Two arcs.
Deployed on the date.

Tell us about the venue and the night. We build both occasions into your programme — and the rest of the Saudi calendar with them.

Schedule a call +971 58 582 0397 WhatsApp

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More guides & fixesExplore more

Saudi Arabia · 2026Saudi music licensing — the full picture and what to do nowOpen →PermitsGEA permits for live music and DJs in restaurantsOpen →Quick fixSpotify ads in your restaurantOpen →Quick fixStaff keeps switchingOpen →GuideMusic licensing for UAE venuesOpen →Venue typeRestaurants — programmingOpen →

Founding Day and National Daythe Kingdom's two celebrations, in the room.