Distribution Deal
An agreement between a rights holder and a distributor to deliver music to streaming platforms and retailers.
What it means
A distribution deal is a contractual agreement between a music rights holder (artist, label, or catalog owner) and a distribution company that handles the delivery of recordings to digital streaming platforms, download stores, and potentially physical retailers. Distribution is the logistical bridge between creating music and making it available to listeners worldwide. In the digital era, distributors handle the technical process of encoding and delivering audio files and metadata to platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Tidal, Deezer, and dozens of others. They also collect revenue from these platforms and pass it back to the rights holder, minus their fee. Distribution deals come in several structures. DIY distributors like DistroKid, TuneCore, and CD Baby charge flat annual fees or per-release fees and let artists keep 100% (or near 100%) of their royalties. Traditional distributors and label services companies like AWAL, Stem, and The Orchard may take a percentage of revenue (typically 15-30%) but offer additional services like playlist pitching, marketing support, and advance funding. For ambient and meditation music creators releasing frequently — which is common given the genre's demand for extensive content libraries — choosing the right distribution model is essential to maximizing net revenue across potentially hundreds of releases.
Technical details
Distribution agreements typically define: the scope of rights granted (usually non-exclusive digital distribution rights), the territory (worldwide or specific regions), the term (1-3 years with auto-renewal, or in perpetuity for some DIY platforms), the distributor's commission or fee structure, payment frequency and minimums, and content delivery specifications. Distributors ingest audio files (typically WAV or FLAC at 16-bit/44.1kHz minimum) along with metadata packages that include track titles, artist names, ISRCs, UPCs, genre tags, release dates, and artwork. The distributor then formats and delivers this content according to each platform's proprietary specifications. Revenue is typically reported and paid monthly or quarterly, with a 2-3 month lag from the date of streaming. Some distributors offer Content ID registration for YouTube, neighboring rights collection, and publishing administration as add-on services.
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