Therefore, in order to have the “full” usage rights of a song, it is often necessary to acquire both the master license and the sync license. In most cases, recording companies usually control the rights to the master license, while authors, composers, and publishers control the sync license. Where the synchronization license allows the client to use the composition (score and lyrics) in order to re-record and re-version the song, the master license confers on the client the rights to the original master recording. The master license gives authorization to the person acquiring it to use the song in audiovisual projects.Īs you can see, this license is quite similar to the sync license, because both are necessary to use the music in the media but, at the same time, they are slightly different. In this case, you would have to be paid both commissions. To simplify it we will say that if you have composed a song and you have not sold the rights, you are the editor.īut if you have composed and recorded the song, you are the owner of the master recording and the rights. In the same way, the owner of the rights – usually the record companies – will also receive a commission for the use of the original master recording. When a song is licensed for synchronization, the composer or editor of the song receives a commission for the use of the composition (score and lyrics).
Negotiate the price of the song rights.Identify and contact the copyright owner or artist.Determine whether the song is copyrighted or in the public domain.
They want to use popular music in their projects and businesses but they don’t really know how to license famous songs in a legal and economical way.įor this reason, we have decided to create this complete guide that will solve the most frequently asked questions we have received from our readers.Īnd we will start by differentiating between the copyright of a song and obtaining the license to use that song.ĭifference between Copyright and Music Licenses This is something that many of our clients have been asking us for some time now.
In other words, none of these companies offer music by well-known artists such as Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars or Beyoncé. However, with the exception of Soundtrack Your Brand and Cloud Cover Music which offer famous background music for business, the rest of the platforms we recommend offer music by independent artists. Possibility of filtering by gender, mood or topic, among others.