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Musicians

Calling all Musicians

Guides to Copyright for musicians

In What Cases Might A Musician Use a Copyright Agreement?

Sampling
Sampling
Licensing Music for Films, TV, or Advertisements
Licensing Music for Films, TV, or Advertisements
Collaborations or features
Collaborations or features
Licensing for covers and remixes
Licensing for covers and remixes
Releases to a Record Label
Releases to a Record Label

What kind of Copyright Agreement is best suited for you?

Two of the most common Copyright Agreements are the CLA (Copyright License Agreement) and the CTA (Copyright Transfer Agreement). Simply said, a CTA transfers the Copyrights from the musician to another entity. A CLA transfers some rights to another entity, the contents of the agreement are fully customizable. That makes it customizable for almost all cases.

When to use a CLA:

A general rule of thumb

If it is coming out under your name it is probably best to use a CLA. Think of music releases on streaming services, and Record Labels.

Collaborations

If you collaborate with another musician, producer, or artist, a CLA ensures both parties have a clear agreement on how the music will be used, divided, and credited.

In case of it being used for a film, you can grant specific permission for the music being used in certain genres. To protect the image and atmosphere of the music.

When to use CTA:

Buyout case

Most of the time, a CTA sells all the rights at once. You sell the rights and get a fixed amount of compensation (unless Royalties were discussed, but that is not the norm). The moment you sell the work, you no longer have influence on how the work is used. Buyers can be Record Labels, Investors, Film studio's, etc...

Once you sign a CTA, you give up control permanently. Always consider whether a CLA with broad licensing rights could give the buyer what they need while letting you retain ownership.

Then think about other usage rights;

Where can it be distributed? Specifically geographically and online. Define how your music can be used. Set clear terms in contracts to protect against unauthorized sharing. Can it be sampled? Are remixes allowed, or do you want Royalties for that? In case of it being used for a film, you can grant specific permission for the music being used in certain genres. To protect the image and atmosphere of the music.

The agreements on OONOO are highly customizable and allow you to fill in empty spaces in an agreement template. Answer the following prompts with your terms. First decide if you need a Copyright License Agreement, or a Copyright Transfer Agreement. A Copyright Transfer Agreement transfers all rights to the other party. If you wish to retain some or most rights, a Copyright License Agreement might be a better fit for you.

  1. 1. Is the agreement Exclusive or non-exclusive?
  2. 2. The Scope and limitations, Include all the above mentioned options to define a solid set of terms for your License.
    Also define if it is for personal or commercial use.
  3. 3. Duration; define the duration of the agreement. After that, the 'Work' is yours again.
  4. 4. Payment terms; Create a set price, make the price reflect if it is for one time use or multiple time use. And then think about Royalties, especially when licensing to a streaming platform. Royalties can be a percentage of the revenue, or a fixed fee AND a percentage of the revenue. Or without the fixed fee, but a set minimum. Also add at what point in the process you expect payment, and what percentage of the full compensation that is.
Start customizing