Rights
Master Rights
Ownership rights to a specific sound recording of a musical work.
Publishing Rights
Ownership rights to the underlying musical composition, including melody, lyrics, and arrangement.
Sync Licensing
A license granting permission to synchronize music with visual media such as film, TV, ads, or video games.
Music Catalog
A collection of musical works and/or recordings owned or controlled by a single entity.
Neighboring Rights
Rights that protect performers and record producers, separate from the copyright in the composition.
Revenue
Mechanical Royalties
Royalties paid to songwriters and publishers when a musical composition is reproduced or distributed.
Performance Royalties
Royalties earned when a musical composition is performed publicly, broadcast, or streamed.
Catalog Valuation
The process of determining the fair market value of a music catalog based on its revenue and assets.
Revenue Multiple
The factor applied to annual revenue to determine a music catalog's sale price.
Royalty Split
The agreed division of royalty income among multiple rights holders or collaborators on a musical work.
Advance
An upfront payment made to a rights holder against future royalties, which must be recouped before additional royalties are paid.
Recoupment
The process by which a label or publisher recovers an advance from an artist's future royalties.
Catalog Acquisition
The purchase of a music catalog — the masters, publishing, or both — from a rights holder by an investor or company.
Partial Sale vs. Full Sale
Selling a percentage of your music rights versus selling 100% of ownership.
Catalog Loan
A financing arrangement that uses a music catalog's future royalties as collateral for a loan, without transferring ownership.
Distribution
ISRC (International Standard Recording Code)
A unique 12-character alphanumeric code that identifies a specific sound recording.
ISWC (International Standard Musical Work Code)
A unique identifier for a musical composition, distinct from any particular recording of it.
Distribution Deal
An agreement between a rights holder and a distributor to deliver music to streaming platforms and retailers.
Digital Aggregator
A service that delivers music to multiple digital streaming platforms and online stores on behalf of artists and labels.
Sub-Publishing
An arrangement where a publisher licenses a foreign publisher to administer and collect royalties in another territory.
Legal
PRO (Performing Rights Organization)
An organization that collects and distributes performance royalties on behalf of songwriters and publishers.
Blanket License
A license that grants access to an entire catalog of music for a set fee, rather than licensing individual works.
Compulsory License
A statutory license that allows anyone to create a new recording of a previously published composition, subject to set royalty rates.
Buyout Deal
A transaction where music rights are sold for a one-time lump sum payment, transferring ownership permanently.
Sample Clearance
The legal process of obtaining permission to use a portion of an existing recording or composition in a new work.
Music Publisher
A company that manages, promotes, and administers the rights to musical compositions on behalf of songwriters.
Record Label
A company that finances, produces, markets, and distributes sound recordings on behalf of artists.
Exclusive vs. Non-Exclusive License
Licensing arrangements that differ in whether the music can be licensed to multiple parties simultaneously.
Streaming
Production
Cue Sheet
A document that logs all music used in a film, TV show, or other audiovisual production for royalty tracking.
Metadata
The descriptive information embedded in or associated with a music file that identifies the work and its rights holders.
Independent Artist
A musician who releases and manages their music without the backing of a major record label.
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