Royalty free music
Encyclopedia
Royalty-free music commonly refers to stock or 'library music' licensed for a single fee, without the need to pay any subsequent royalties
Royalties
Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...

.

How it works

There are many applications for which music must be licensed, such as for use in video and multimedia production, but the traditional payment structure (in which a royalty
Royalties
Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...

 is charged for each usage) would be cumbersome or more costly. Royalty-free music libraries originally addressed this by offering music that could be purchased for (in most cases) a one-time fee and then be used by the purchaser as many times as needed.

For example: If a piece of royalty-free music were purchased to be used on a multimedia CD project, it would not matter if one CD or 100,000 CDs were produced - the purchase fee would be exactly the same.

However, users of royalty-free music have found this is now often not the case.
Several independent libraries were bought out by larger businesses that have altered the basic meaning of the term. For example the royalty-free music license at SmartSound
SmartSound
SmartSound Software Inc. is an American computer software and royalty free music company headquartered in Northridge, California, USA. The company is focused on providing production music that can be made to a custom length using their patented process....

 states "You must obtain a "mechanical" license for replication of quantities in excess of 10,000 units."

A number of companies sharply restrict the number of copies that may be manufactured without additional fees coming due, generally under five thousand units .
Some allow "free" usage only for productions that will be aired on broadcast stations that pay BMI/ASCAP/SESAC royalty fees, and the producer is required to regularly file cue sheets reporting the broadcasts.
Productions aired on outlets not signatory to such agreements, or shown in public performance (such as motion pictures in theaters) may be required to pay other additional fees.

Precise details of the payment structure and the extent of the rights granted vary from library to library, as specified in a license agreement
Software license agreement
A software license agreement is a contract between the "licensor" and purchaser of the right to use software. The license may define ways under which the copy can be used, in addition to the automatic rights of the buyer including the first sale doctrine and .Many form contracts are only contained...

.

Although royalty free music is royalty free to the purchaser, producers/composers may still receive royalties from broadcasting radio or television stations via their Performance Rights Organization, for example, the PRS in the UK or ASCAP or BMI
Broadcast Music Incorporated
Broadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...

 in the USA.

Some royalty-free music libraries use a microstock model in which individual composers retain their copyright and are paid a portion of each sale, while others, like Getty Images, buy the copyright directly from the composers for a flat fee, and then resell the tracks as their own.

See also

  • File sharing
    File sharing
    File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digitally stored information, such as computer programs, multimedia , documents, or electronic books. It may be implemented through a variety of ways...

  • Free music
    Free music
    Free music is music that, like free software, can freely be copied, distributed and modified for any purpose. Thus free music is either in the public domain or licensed under a free license by the artist or copyright holder themselves, often as a method of promotion. It does not mean that there...

  • Production music
    Production music
    Production music is the name given to recorded music produced and owned by production music libraries and licensed to customers for use in film, television, radio and other media.-Introduction:...

  • Royalty free
    Royalty free
    Royalty-Free, or RF, refers to the right to use copyrighted material or intellectual property without the need to pay royalties for each use or per volume sold, or some time period of use or sales.-Computer standards:...

  • Stock music
  • Open music
    Open music
    Open Music is music that is shareable, available in "source code" form, allows derivative works and is free of cost for non-commercial use. It is the concept of "open source" computer software applied to music...

  • Open Music Model
    Open Music Model
    The Open Music Model is an economic and technological framework for the recording industry based on research conducted at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology...

  • Podsafe
    Podsafe
    Podsafe is a term created in the podcasting community to refer to any work which, through its licensing, specifically allows the use of the work in podcasting, regardless of restrictions the same work might have in other realms...

  • Royalties
    Royalties
    Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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