Music Industry Glossary: Key Terms and Definitions
Introduction
The music industry has a lot of important terms when it comes to things like royalties, rights, and contracts. Whether you're an artist, manager, or working behind the scenes, knowing these concepts is key to navigating the business side of music. This glossary offers a clear look at the essential terms, helping you stay informed and make confident decisions in your career.
A&R (Artists and Repertoire)
A&R, short for Artists and Repertoire, refers to the division of a record label responsible for scouting and signing new talent. A&R representatives also play a critical role in overseeing the development of an artist’s music, guiding song selection, and sometimes even assisting in the production process.
Advance
An advance is almost always defined as a prepayment of royalties, whether the advance is paid by a record company to an artist, a publisher to a writer, or a merchandiser to an artist. An advance is also sometimes called a "minimum guarantee." Advances in the music industry do not earn interest and are not loans. It is a popular misconception that artists are "in debt" to their record companies or writers to their publishers. By any normal definition of "debt," this is not true for two big reasons and many smaller ones: The advance payment does not earn interest, and it does not have to be repaid. The advance is only "recoupable," meaning that the advance is applied against earned royalties.
Blanket License
A blanket license allows venues, radio stations, or streaming platforms to use any music from a PRO’s catalog without needing individual licenses for each song. This simplifies the process for businesses that regularly use music, as they don’t need to obtain permissions for every song played.
DSP or Digital Service Provider
A Digital Service Provider (DSP) is a term used to describe retail stores such as iTunes, as well as streaming providers, such as Spotify or Apple Music.
Distributor Royalty Reports
Distributor royalty reports are critical for tracking the revenue artists generate through streams, sales, and downloads across all platforms. These reports provide a consolidated view of an artist’s earnings and help track payments. Key data points include:
Statement Period: The time covered by the report.
Transaction Period: The period when the sales or streams occurred.
Artist Info: The performer associated with the tracks.
Release and Track Titles: Identifiers for the recordings.
UPCs and ISRCs: Unique codes used to track releases and individual tracks.
Service and Channel: Where the streams or sales happened.
Territory: Geographic region of sales/streams.
Quantity or Units: The total number of streams or sales.
Net Revenue: Income after deductions.
Most distributor royalty reports are provided in CSV or TSV formats, but tools like Royalty Magic can help consolidate and analyze this data efficiently.
ISRC (International Standard Recording Code)
The International Standard Recording Code (ISRC) is a unique identifier assigned to individual tracks or sound recordings, including music videos. It is track-specific, meaning each individual song or recording gets its own ISRC. This code helps monitor and track the usage of that specific track across platforms for sales, streaming, and licensing purposes. The ISRC stays with the track for its entire life and is critical for ensuring accurate royalty payments to the rightful owners.
Key Points:
Track-specific identifier used for individual songs or recordings.
Essential for tracking streams, sales, and other uses across various platforms.
Enables accurate royalty payments and licensing for each individual track.
Remains the same for the lifetime of the track.
Master Rights
Master rights belong to the entity that owns the actual sound recording, often a record label or independent artist. Master rights govern how the recording is used, sold, or licensed. For example, if a song is used in a commercial or movie, the holder of the master rights must approve it and will earn royalties from that usage.
Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC)
The Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) is a U.S.-based organization responsible for collecting and distributing mechanical royalties from digital streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. The MLC ensures songwriters and publishers are paid for the reproduction of their works on these platforms.
Mechanical Royalties
Mechanical royalties are paid to songwriters whenever their music is reproduced or distributed in physical or digital formats. This includes streaming, downloads, and physical sales (e.g., CDs and vinyl). Mechanical royalties are collected by organizations like the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) in the U.S.
Most Favored Nations (MFN)
Often abbreviated as "MFN" (Most Favored Nations), the favored nations clause in music sync is a contract provision in which a seller (or licensor) agrees to give the buyer (or licensee) the best terms it makes available to any other buyer (or licensee). For example, if there are three owners of rights in a song being synced and one negotiates a better rate (e.g., a $5,000 fee along with specific terms), all other parties must receive the same deal.
Music Distribution
Music distribution refers to the process of making music available to the public through physical or digital means. Digital distribution, in particular, has become the dominant model, with platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube allowing artists to reach global audiences. Music aggregators like DistroKid, TuneCore, and CD Baby help independent artists distribute their music across these platforms.
Music Licensing
Music licensing refers to the legal process of getting permission to use a song for various purposes. There are different types of licenses, such as:
Master use license for using a sound recording
Sync license for pairing music with visual media
Mechanical license for reproducing music in physical or digital formats
Public performance license for playing music publicly (e.g., at concerts or on the radio)
Music Manager
Music managers are responsible for guiding an artist’s career, helping with decisions on branding, touring, and contracts. Managers typically earn a percentage of the artist’s total revenue, most often 20%.
Music Supervisor
A music supervisor is a person who combines music and visual media. According to The Guild of Music Supervisors, a music supervisor is "a qualified professional who oversees all music-related aspects of film, television, advertising, video games, and other existing or emerging visual media platforms as required."
Neighboring Rights
Neighboring rights relate to the public performance of sound recordings, and the royalties from these rights are typically paid to performers and master rights holders. While similar to performance royalties, neighboring rights apply to the actual recordings rather than the composition. These royalties are especially important in regions like Europe, where neighboring rights are more widely recognized.
Performance Rights Organizations (PROs)
PROs, such as ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC in the U.S., are responsible for collecting performance royalties on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers. These organizations track when songs are played in public, on the radio, or streamed online and ensure that the rights holders are compensated.
Performance Royalties
Performance royalties are earned when a song is played publicly—on radio, TV, at live events, or through streaming services. These royalties are collected by Performance Rights Organizations (PROs), such as ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC, which then distribute the royalties to songwriters and publishers.
Public Domain
Once a piece of music’s copyright expires, it enters the public domain, meaning anyone can use it without obtaining permission or paying royalties. The public domain is important for music historians, educators, and creators who want to adapt or use older works.
Publishing Deal Types
Just like recording deals, publishing deals are central to the music industry and offer different structures depending on the needs of the songwriter or composer. Below are the most common types of publishing deals, explaining how songwriters can monetize their compositions.
Traditional Publishing Deal
In a traditional publishing deal, the songwriter signs over a portion (typically 50%) of their publishing rights to a music publisher. The publisher is responsible for promoting the songwriter’s compositions and licensing them for commercial use (such as in films, TV, and advertisements). In return, the publisher collects royalties and splits the earnings with the songwriter, typically 50/50. The publisher also administers the copyright and ensures that all the necessary registrations and royalty collections are handled.
Key Points:
Songwriter keeps 100% of the writer's share but gives away 50% of the publisher's share.
The publisher works to exploit the compositions and generate income.
The songwriter benefits from the publisher’s network and expertise.
Co-Publishing Deal
In a co-publishing deal, the songwriter shares the ownership of the publishing rights with the music publisher. Typically, the songwriter retains 100% of their writer's share and 50% of the publisher’s share, while the publisher takes the remaining 50% of the publisher's share. The publisher still plays an active role in promoting the songs, but the songwriter retains a larger portion of the overall earnings than in a traditional deal.
Key Points:
Songwriter retains a larger percentage of their publishing income than in a traditional deal.
Publisher continues to provide administrative and promotional support.
Songwriter remains a partial owner of the publishing rights.
Administration Deal
An administration deal is a more hands-off approach where the songwriter retains full ownership of their publishing rights but hires a publisher (or administrator) to handle the administrative tasks. These tasks include registering compositions, collecting royalties, and issuing licenses. The administrator typically takes a 10-20% fee from the collected royalties, but does not share in the ownership of the copyright.
Key Points:
The songwriter retains 100% of their rights and royalties.
The publisher is primarily responsible for collecting and distributing royalties, and handling licensing agreements.
This deal structure is ideal for experienced songwriters or those with strong industry connections who prefer to retain control over their catalog.
Single-Song Agreement
A single-song agreement is used when a songwriter grants publishing rights for one specific song or composition. The publisher handles the song's promotion and administration, typically splitting the royalties with the songwriter as they would in a traditional deal. This type of deal can be attractive to songwriters who wish to test the waters with a publisher or only want help with specific works rather than their entire catalog.
Key Points:
Focuses on one specific song or composition.
Common for songwriters who want to maintain control of their broader catalog but need help with a particular track.
The publisher promotes and collects royalties for just that song.
Sub-Publishing Deal
A sub-publishing deal involves a songwriter or music publisher granting rights to another publisher in a different territory or country. The sub-publisher handles local promotion, registration, and royalty collection in that region, typically for an additional fee. This deal is useful for songwriters with international appeal who want to maximize their revenue in foreign markets.
Key Points:
Used to promote and administer songs in specific regions outside the songwriter’s home country.
Sub-publisher helps collect royalties and maximize local opportunities.
Often involves an additional percentage of royalties being taken for the sub-publisher’s services.
Publishing Rights
Publishing rights refer to the ownership and control over a song’s composition (lyrics and melody). These rights are different from master rights, which pertain to the sound recording itself. Songwriters typically assign their publishing rights to a music publisher in exchange for royalty payments. These rights are essential in determining how music earns royalties from performances, mechanical uses, and licensing deals.
Publishing Split
A publishing split refers to the way a composition is split between the writers. A split sheet is a document that states who wrote what percentage of the song(s). It should be created for each song you write before shopping it to a third party for commercial publishing.
Recording Deal Types
Recording deals are central to an artist's career, as they dictate the rights, responsibilities, and royalties related to the creation and distribution of recorded music. Below are common types of recording deals that artists may encounter:
Traditional Record Deal
A traditional record deal is the most common form of agreement between an artist and a record label. The label finances the recording, marketing, and promotion of the artist's music and in return, owns the master recordings. Artists typically receive a royalty percentage from the sale or streaming of the music. However, the artist must first repay any advance or recording costs out of their earnings before they can receive royalties (this is known as recoupment).
Key Points:
The label owns the master recordings.
The artist receives royalties after costs are recouped.
The label typically provides financial and promotional support, but the artist may have less control over their music.
360 Deal
In a 360 deal, the record label takes a percentage of not only the artist's recorded music income but also other revenue streams, such as touring, merchandise, endorsements, and other business ventures. In exchange for this broader investment in the artist’s career, the label provides more support, such as larger advances, marketing, and long-term career development.
Key Points:
The label has a stake in multiple aspects of the artist’s career.
The artist benefits from greater label investment and support.
This deal reflects the shift in revenue from recorded music to live performances and merchandise.
Distribution Deal
A distribution deal allows an artist to retain ownership of their recordings while the label or distributor handles the distribution of the music to retail stores, streaming platforms, and other outlets. In exchange, the distributor takes a percentage of the sales. This deal is ideal for artists who want more control over their music but need help reaching a wider audience.
Key Points:
The artist retains ownership of the master recordings.
The distributor helps with getting the music to various outlets in exchange for a fee or percentage.
Suitable for independent artists who have a solid team for production and promotion.
Licensing Deal
A licensing deal allows an artist to retain ownership of the master recordings but grants a record label the rights to market, promote, and sell the music for a specified period. After the licensing term ends, the rights revert to the artist. This type of deal is often used by independent artists looking for temporary promotional help without giving up ownership.
Key Points:
The artist retains ownership but licenses their music to the label for a certain period.
The label helps with promotion and distribution.
After the licensing term ends, rights revert to the artist.
Net Profit Deal
A net profit deal is typically offered by indie labels and is structured so that both the artist and the label share profits equally (usually 50/50) after all expenses have been recouped. The expenses, such as marketing, recording costs, and distribution, are deducted from the revenue before the artist and the label receive their share.
Key Points:
The label and the artist split profits after expenses are recouped.
Commonly used by independent labels.
The artist has more control over the creative process compared to traditional deals.
Royalty-Free Music
Royalty-free music allows users to pay a one-time fee for a license, giving them the right to use the music without paying ongoing royalties. It is commonly used for background music in videos, commercials, or online content. However, royalty-free music does not necessarily mean free music; it simply refers to the payment model.
Sampling and Sample Clearance
Sampling refers to using a portion of another artist’s song in a new work. Sample clearance is the legal process of obtaining permission from the original rights holders to use the sample. Failure to clear a sample can result in lawsuits or the removal of the song from distribution platforms.
SoundExchange
SoundExchange is a U.S.-based organization that collects digital performance royalties for sound recordings. This applies to non-interactive streaming services such as Pandora and satellite radio. These royalties are distinct from those collected by PROs, as they pertain to the sound recording (master rights) rather than the composition.
Split Sheets
A split sheet is a document that outlines how royalties will be divided between contributors to a song. It is essential for collaborators to establish how much each person will earn before releasing the song to avoid disputes later.
Streaming Revenue
Streaming platforms generate revenue for artists through plays, but the payout models can vary significantly. For instance, platforms like Spotify use a pro-rata payment system, where the total revenue is divided among rights holders based on the percentage of streams their songs received. This makes streaming a lower-paying, yet essential revenue source for many artists.
Synchronization (Sync) License
A sync license is required when a song is used in conjunction with visual media, such as TV shows, movies, video games, or commercials. The license grants permission to synchronize the music with the visual component. Sync licensing can be a lucrative revenue stream for both artists and songwriters.
Touring and Live Performance Revenue
Touring is a significant revenue stream for many artists, especially in an era where physical music sales have declined. Income from touring includes ticket sales, merchandise, and sponsorships. Live performances are not only a way to generate revenue but also an opportunity to build a fan base.
UPC (Universal Product Code)
The Universal Product Code (UPC) is a unique code assigned to a music release (such as an album, single, or EP) as a whole. It is release-specific, meaning it covers the entire product, whether it's a physical product (like a CD or vinyl) or a digital release (such as an album or single available for streaming or download). The UPC tracks the overall sales and distribution of that particular release, making it crucial for keeping track of sales metrics, chart performance, and inventory for both physical and digital music products.
Key Points:
Release-specific identifier used for entire albums, singles, or EPs.
Tracks the sales and distribution of the full release across both physical and digital formats.
Necessary for inventory management, chart tracking, and sales reports.
Used in platforms like iTunes, Spotify, and Amazon to organize and catalog music releases.
Frequently Used Music Industry Abbreviations
ABBREVIATION | FULL FORM | DESCRIPTION |
A&R | Artists and Repertoire | A&R stands for Artists and Repertoire. A&R's are responsible for talent scouting and the artistic and commercial development of the recording artist or songwriter. They also act as a liaison between the creator, their team and the record label or publisher. At a record label, every activity involving artists to the point of release is generally considered under the purview, and responsibility, of the A&R. |
AAC | Advanced Audio Coding | Advanced Audio Coding is an audio coding standard for lossy digital audio compression. Designed to be the successor of the MP3 format, AAC generally achieves higher sound quality than MP3 at the same bit rate. AAC has been standardized by ISO and IEC, as part of the MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 specifications. |
ABR | Average Bit Rate | Also known as 'Bit rate', this term refers to the average amount of data transferred per unit of time, usually measured per second, commonly for digital music or video. An MP3 file, for example, that has an average bit rate of 128 kbit/s transfers, on average, 128,000 bits every second. |
AFM | American Federation of Musicians | 80,000 musicians comprise the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM). They perform in orchestras, backup bands, festivals, clubs and theatersboth on Broadway and on tour. AFM members also make music for films, TV, commercials and sound recordings. It is the largest union of musicians in the world. |
AIM | Association of Independent Music | The Association of Independent Music is a non-profit trade body established in 1998 by UK independent record labels to represent the independent record sector, which in 2016 constituted approximately 23% of the UK market. Its members include record labels, self-releasing artists and distributors. |
ASCAP | American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers | ASCAP is an American performing rights organisation, and a membership association of more than 750,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers. They are the only PRO in the US owned and governed by its members. |
AV | Audiovisual | Using both sight and sound, typically in the form of images and recorded speech or music. |
BASCA | British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors | The British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors, trading as The Ivors Academy. The Ivors Academy is one of the largest professional associations for music writers in Europe and exists to support, protect and campaign for the interests of songwriters, lyricists and composers. |
BIEM | Bureau International de l'Edition Mécanique | BIEM is the international organisation representing mechanical rights societies. Mechanical rights societies exist in most countries. They license the reproduction of songs (including musical, literary and dramatic works). Their members are composers, authors and publishers and their clients are record companies and other users of recorded music. They also license mechanical aspects of the downloading of music via the Internet. BIEM negotiates a standard agreement with representatives of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) fixing the conditions for the use of the repertoire of the societies. The standard agreement is applied by the member societies to the extent that there is no compulsory licence or statutory licence in their territory. BIEM's role is also to assist in technical collaboration between its member societies and to help in solving problems that arise between individual members. |
BMI | Broadcast Music, Incorporated | BMI is one of the four major United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP, SESAC, and GMR. It collects license fees from businesses that use music on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed. |
BPI | British Phonographic Industry | The BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, commonly known as the British Phonographic Industry or BPI, is the British recorded music industry's trade association. |
CDPA | The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act | The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, also known as the CDPA, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that received Royal Assent on 15 November 1988. |
CMRRA | Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency | The Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency is a musiclicensing collective which represents the vast majority of music publishers and copyright owners doing business in Canada. |
DJ | Disc Jockey | A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who hosts recorded music for an audience. Most common types of DJs include radio DJs, club DJs, who perform at a nightclub or music festival and turntablists who use record players, usually turntables, to manipulate sounds on phonograph records. |
DMCA | The Digital Millennium Copyright Act | The Digital Millennium Copyright Act is a 1998 United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization. It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or services intended to circumvent measures that control access to copyrighted works. |
DSP | Digital Service Provider | A Digital Service Provider (DSP) is a term used to describe retail stores such as iTunes, as well as streaming providers, such as Spotify or Apple Music. |
EP | Extended Play Record | An extended play record, often referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single, but is usually unqualified as an album or LP. |
EUCD | The EU Copyright Directive | The Information Society Directive is a directive of the European Union that was enacted to implement the WIPO Copyright Treaty and to harmonise aspects of copyright law across Europe, such as copyright exceptions. The directive was first enacted in 2001 under the internal market provisions of the Treaty of Rome. |
GEMA | The Gesellschaft für musikalische Aufführungs- und mechanische Vervielfältigungsrechte | English: Society for musical performing and mechanical reproduction rights; GEMA, Germany |
HOA | Heads of agreement | Generally a non-binding document, unless otherwise stated, outlining the main issues relevant to a tentative (partnership or other) agreement, prior to a full contract being drafted. |
IFPI | International Federation of the Phonographic Industry | The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 1933 |
IP | Intellectual Property | Intellectual property is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The most well-known types are copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets. |
ISM | Incorporated Society of Musicians | The Incorporated Society of Musicians is the UK's professional body for musicians, a subject association for music education and is an independent non profit-making organisation. The ISM was set up in 1882 to promote the importance of music and protect the rights of those working within music. |
ISRC | International Standard Recording Code | The International Standard Recording Code is an international standard code for uniquely identifying sound recordings and music video recordings. |
ISNI | International Standard Name Identifier | ISNI is the ISO certified global standard number for identifying the millions of contributors to creative works and those active in their distribution, including researchers, inventors, writers, artists, visual creators, performers, producers, publishers, aggregators, and more. An identifier designed to solve the problem of artists with multiple names and/or artists with the same name https://isni.org/ |
ISWC | International Standard Work Code | International Standard Musical Work Code is a unique identifier for musical works, similar to ISBN for books. |
MCN | Multi-channel Network | Multi-Channel Networks ('MCNs' or 'networks') are third-party service providers that affiliate with multiple YouTube channels to offer services that may include audience development, content programming, creator collaborations, digital rights management, monetization, and/or sales. |
MCPS | Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society | MCPS is the Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society, which collects royalties for works that are released by a record company, downloaded or reproduced onto a CD, DVD or LP. |
MDRC | Minimum Delivery and Release Commitment | The term 'Minimum Commitment' may be worded differently from contract to contract (i.e. Minimum Delivery Commitment, Minimum Delivery Release Commitment), but all of it basically means the same thing. In publishing, this contract provision places a quota on the songwriter. |
MFN | Most Favoured Nation | A most favoured nation clause (also called a most favoured customer clause or most favoured licensee clause) is a contract provision in which a seller (or licensor) agrees to give the buyer (or licensee) the best terms it makes available to any other buyer (or licensee). |
MIDI | Musical Instrument Digital Interface | MIDI is a technical standard that describes a communications protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, computers, and related audio devices for playing, editing and recording music. |
MMF | Music Managers Forum | The Music Managers Forum (MMF) is a professional community of music managers. |
MP3 | MPEG Layer-3 Audio | MP3 is a digital music format for creating high-quality sound files. It has transformed the way people buy and listen to music. The great attraction of the MP3 format is its ability to compress files, making it a convenient, versatile and very popular way of storing music. |
MP4 | MPEG Layer-4 Audio | MP4 is a digital multimedia container format most commonly used to store video and audio, but it can also be used to store other data such as subtitles and still images. Like most modern container formats, it allows streaming over the Internet. |
MPA | Music Publishers Association | The Music Publishers Association (MPA) is a non-profit organisation representing music publishers in the United Kingdomsince 1881. See also The Music Publishers Association of the United States (MPA), which is a non-profit music publishing organization based in New York City. Founded in 1895, the MPA is the oldest music trade organization in the United States which addresses issues pertaining to print publishing with an emphasis on copyright education and advocacy. |
MU | Musicians Union | UK's equivalent of AFM |
NR | Neighbouring Rights | While performance rights refer to the right to publicly broadcast the musiccomposition associated with a given song, the neighboring right is the payment due to the owner of the sound recording (typically the recording artist and/or the label) for that same public performance. |
OAC | Official Artist Channel | If you're an artist on YouTube, your Official Artist Channel (OAC) brings together all your content from your different YouTube channels into one place. The channel automatically programs your music catalog on two new shelves, including your music videos, songs, and albums. |
P&D | Pressing and Distribution agreement or P&D deal | Pressing and Distribution agreement or P&D deal |
PPD | Published Price to Dealers | In the music industry, the Published Price to Dealer (PPD) is the wholesale unit price of a recorded work. It is often used in recording industry contracts as a basic figure for defining royalty shares. |
PPL | Phonographic Performance Limited | PPL UK, Phonographic Performance Limited, is a UK-based music licensing company and performance rights organisation founded by Decca and EMI in 1934. As of 2019 PPL collected royalties for over 100,000 performers and recording rightsholders. |
PRO | Performance Rights Organisation | A performance rights organisation (PRO), also known as a performing rights society, provides intermediary functions, particularly collection of royalties, between copyright holders and parties who wish to use copyrighted works publicly in locations such as shopping and dining venues. |
PRS | Performing Right Society | PRS for Music Limited is the UK's leading collection society, bringing together two collection societies: the Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society and the Performing Right Society. It undertakes collective rights management for musical works on behalf of its 140,000 members. |
RIAA | Recording Industry Association of America | The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry in the United States. |
SACEM | Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Editeurs de musique | Société des auteurs, compositeurs et éditeurs de musique is a French professional association collecting payments of artists' rights and distributing the rights to the original songwriters, composers, and music publishers. |
SAG-AFTRA | The Screen Actors Guild?American Federation of Television and Radio Artists | American labor union representing over 160,000 film and television principal and background performers, journalists, and radio personalities worldwide. |
SDARS | Satellite Digital Audio Radio Services | Digital audio radio service refers to any type of digital radio program service. In the United States it is the official FCC term for digital radio services. The most popular type of DARS in the U.S. and Canada is SDARS: Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service, used by Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio. |
SKU | Shop Keeping Unit | Like a bar code for each version of a master, to keep track of who gets paid |
SME | Sony Music Entertainment | Sony Music Entertainment is an American global music conglomerate owned by Sony Corporation of America and incorporated as a general partnership of Sony Music Holdings Inc. through Sony Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. |
UGC | User-Generated Content | User-generated content, alternatively known as user-created content, is any form of content, such as images, videos, text, and audio, that has been posted by users on online platforms such as social media and wikis. |
UMG | Universal Music Group | Universal Music Group is an American global music corporation that is majority owned by the French media conglomerate Vivendi, with Chinese tech company Tencent owning a minority stake. UMG's global corporate headquarters are located in Santa Monica, California. |
UPC | Universal Product Code | The Universal Product Code is a 12-digit barcode used to identify and track commercial products, including music releases. In the music industry, a UPC is assigned to albums, singles, or digital releases to facilitate distribution, sales tracking, and reporting on platforms such as streaming services and retail stores. |
VPL | Video Performance Limited | VPL is PPL's sister company and licenses music videos when they are played in public or broadcast on TV. |
WAV | Waveform Audio File Format | Waveform Audio File Format is an audio file format standard, developed by IBM and Microsoft, for storing an audio bitstream on PCs. Though a WAV file can contain compressed audio, the most common WAV audio format is uncompressed audio in the linear pulse code modulation (LPCM) format. LPCM is also the standard audio coding format for audio CDs, which store two-channel LPCM audio sampled at 44,100 Hz with 16 bits per sample. Since LPCM is uncompressed and retains all of the samples of an audio track, professional users or audio experts may use the WAV format with LPCM audio for maximum audio quality.[11] WAV files can also be edited and manipulated with relative ease using software. |
WMG | Warner Music Group | Warner Music Group Corp. is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the three "major" recording companies and the third largest in the global music industry, after Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment. |
Conclusion
Understanding the key terms surrounding music rights, royalties, and contracts is vital for anyone involved in the music industry. Whether you're an artist, manager, or professional, this knowledge empowers you to protect your creative work, optimize your earnings, and navigate the complexities of the business with confidence. As the industry continues to evolve, staying informed and up-to-date will not only help you make better decisions but also ensure long-term success in your career.
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