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FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

ARTISTS/LABELS

Why should I submit my music to BeatPick.com?
  1. Your music will be licensed for film, tv, advertising and many other commercial uses. You then have a chance to earn good money and gain a lot of exposure.
  2. Your music will appear on our website and professionals can license it automatically on any day and at any time of the week from anywhere in the world.
  3. Your music will be regularly pitched by our music licensing managers to hundreds of music supervisors who work in film, tv and advertising.
  4. We will press promo CDs and DVDs with your music and send them to professionals in film, tv and advertising for perusal.
  5. Your music may be used for In-stores streaming gaining you a chance to earn money and be promoted to the public.
  6. We also sell digital downloadable versions of your album / EP.
  7. Your music may be used for podcasts, webradios and non commercial projects, helping you to gaining notoriety.
  8. You have the chance to become part of a highly selected yet diverse music catalogue.
How do I know if my submission has been accepted or refused?

BeatPick.com answers all music submissions within 4 weeks time. You will receive an answer even if your submission was not accepted.

What format should I submit my music in?

We recommend mp3 (minimum 128kbps), WAV, FLAC, AIFF and WMA files or compressed archives (zip, rar etc) containing your songs.

Is BeatPick.com’s contract non-exclusive?

Absolutely. While you are a BeatPick.com member you can still join any other non-exclusive service you wish to.

Do I need to pay a subscription fee to join BeatPick.com?

NO! We never, ever ask for money from our artists, unlike many other services now active on the web.

How does music licensing work, precisely?

When you license music for commercial purposes you are selling two types of licenses:

  1. Synchronization License: gives you the right to ‘sync’ the Composition with images in your production, as described above.
  2. Master Use License: This is exactly the same rights as the sync license, except it applies to the Master, the sound recording itself – the actual recorded interpretation of the musical composition.

Sometimes synchronization licenses (the composition) are owned by the publisher, while the record company owns the master rights. Other times the independent artist owns both synchronization rights and master use rights. It does not make any difference for BeatPick.com as we need the owner of both rights to grant us the temporary and non-exclusive control of both rights. This is because we need to serve our clients quickly and efficiently as we are a one-stop shop for music licensing.

When we license the synchronization and master use of your music we ask for a placement fee. That fee is what we share 50/50 with the artist. After the placement, for certain types of licensing opportunities, such as TV shows, advertising and cinematographic theatrical releases, you will also earn backend royalties (sometimes called performance royalties). Those royalties can be even larger than the initial placement fee and can be collected for many years after the initial deal. Those backend royalties are 100% yours. Many other services also take a cut on the backend royalties. We ask for a cut only if you need help with backend royalty administration and specifically require our help. Otherwise we believe those royalties should be yours.

These backend royalties are collected on your behalf by your collecting society, if you are an affiliated member.

What are synchronization rights and master rights?

Synchronization or “sync” rights are involved whenever recorded music is used in combination with visual images in a production.

When you hear music on the radio or TV, this recording is instead known in the music industry as the “master recording”. This is what is produced after all the musicians have played their parts and these parts have been “mixed” together for release.

When music is licensed for commercial purposes you are selling two types of licenses:

  1. Synchronization License: gives you the right to ‘sync’ the Composition with images in your production.
  2. Master Use License: This is exactly the same rights as the sync license, except it applies to the Master, the sound recording itself – the actual recorded interpretation of the musical composition.

According to the legal agreements referring to each situation, these rights can be:

  1. owned 100% by the musician/band (quite frequent in the case of independent musicians).
  2. divided in quotas between the various songwriters/band members/performers.
  3. synchronization rights can be owned by a music publisher, while master rights can be owned by a record company.
Can I join BeatPick.com if I am affiliated with a collecting society?

Yes, you can. BeatPick.com only works with Synchronization rights, it does not substitute a collecting society.

If you wonder which collecting society to join, we suggest joining Ascap or Bmi which are the only collecting societies that offer non-exclusive assignments to their members.

If you enjoy non-exclusive assignments with your collecting society then we can find more opportunities for your music (for example as background music in public spaces such as supermarkets and stores).

This scenario only applies if you are not registered with any other collecting society worldwide.

What type of earnings am I looking forward to from BeatPick.com?

It’s difficult to foresee how much an artist can earn from BeatPick.com. A lot depends on the type of music you make. Obviously certain types of musical genres are more suitable than others for the majority of projects, and therefore stand a better chance of making good earnings.

However it is also true that rare music sometimes can obtain very high profile placements for specific cases.

It is possible to state that music licensing placements range from 50 Euro up to 20.000 Euro. On average a typical music license ranges between 700 Euro and 1500 Euro per track, per use.

Some of our best artists are getting quite a few placements per year.

On top of what you get from us, the synchronization fee, you will earn 100% of the backend royalties, that some placements generate for artists, through your collecting society. A high profile placement can generate royalties for several years after the placement was made. That money is 100% yours.

Generally speaking we see BeatPick.com as an extra-tool for you to promote your name and earn from your music on top of what you regularly do. And we never, ever ask for money from our artists, as many other services do.

What percentage do I earn on licensing deals?

BeatPick.com pays you 50% of all earnings made by your music through our site. The fees are paid out four times per year.

Does BeatPick.com also collect my backend royalties?

No, BeatPick.com does not collect backend royalties. Those are 100% yours.

We only collect backend royalties if you specifically require us to administer your backend royalties for you.

For a more exhaustive explanation, please click here.

Can I preview the BeatPick.com contract?

Of course! Click on this link to download a fac-simile copy of our contract: Artist agreement

Please do not fill in or send us this copy: before we accept your contract we must have accepted your music (view our submit section).

Can I preview a standard licensing agreement?

Of course! Click on this link to download a fac-simile copy of our standard licensing agreement with clients: Client agreement

What are the main points I should be aware of regarding the BeatPick.com contract with artists?
  1. We license your music for commercial purposes (for film, tv, advertising, etc.).
  2. We share earnings 50/50 with you.
  3. Backend royalties are 100% yours.
  4. The agreement is non-exclusive and can be terminated anytime (with a 30 day notice).
  5. We sell your album (you can ask for this to not be implemented) via our website.
  6. We promote your music by sending it to webradios, podcasts, music supervisors and encouraging its’ use in non-commercial projects.
  7. We license your music for distribution in private and public spaces.
  8. We license your music for mobile phones

CLIENTS

Why should I license music from BeatPick.com?

BeatPick.com is a one-stop music licensing shop. This means you can immediately obtain master and synchronization rights to use a song in your production. You can license music instantly and online or you can ask us to look for music on your behalf (for free!). Our music licensing system is quick, easy and efficient.

Our music has been selected over the years to provide you with the best independent artists, cult labels and established professionals worldwide.

We do not license boring and cold production or stock music.

What type of use can I make of this music?

Any use you can think of. Film, TV, advertising, background music for public spaces, DVDs, sonic branding, telephone on hold and any other media use.

If we have not thought about the licensing use, please contact us and we’ll create a custom license for you.

We also issue membership plans, so you can get as much music as you need for a monthly fee.

What type of music can I find here?

BeatPick.com carefully selects only the best independent musicians. We receive over 200 music submissions per month, and generally only accept 10% of these artists.

We cover every possible musical genre, from 1950s Italian opera all the way to 2009 pulsating Hip Hop, from Americana country rock to Electronic experiments.

We also have classical/electronic composers under contract who can help if you are seeking for a piece of music to be composed for a specific need.

What are the costs of music licensing at BeatPick.com?

Music licensing at BeatPick.com can range between 30 Euro to 30.000 Euro depending on the type of project you are working upon.

For a comprehensive pricing list please click “License Song” next to any song, answer the questions and get an instant quote.

Who else has licensed music at BeatPick.com before me?

Rest assured that licensing music via BeatPick.com places you in a safe harbor.
Hundreds of companies and individuals have licensed music at BeatPick.com in the past 3 years of business operations.
Please find below a short list of some of the companies that have used our music:

20th Century Fox (Film)
Mercedes Benz (Compilation CDs, Commercial Podcast, Portable Devices)
Ralph Lauren (Fashion Show)
Scott Winter Sports (Advertising, Internet Video)
The Travel Channel (Advertising)
Original Marines (In-Stores Video Advertising)
Toyota (Advertising)
Dodge (Advertising)
Chevrolet (Portable Devices / USB Pen Drive)
ServicePlan (Advertising)
Audition.alaplaya.eu / burda-ic.com (Games)
Fedora (Games / Software)
K-SWISS (Advertising)
Apollinaris (cd compilation)

Can I preview a standard licensing agreement?

Of course! Click on this link to download a fac-simile copy of our standard licensing agreement with clients: Client agreement

I can't find the type of use I’m trying to license music for in your menu. What should I do?

If our list of license typologies does not comprehend the specific need you are seeking to fulfil, please click on the “Custom/All Media” license, and fill in the requested fields. A member of our staff will contact you in less than 24 hours.

What are the advantages of playing BeatPick.com’s music in a chain of stores?

When we license music for public spaces, we license music directly to the client, without the need for you to ask for a license from your local collecting society. Generally speaking our fees are usually 50% lower than collecting society fees for public space broadcasting, and include various other services, such as music selection, 365-days-per-year playlist creation, online webradio custom setup, and in Europe we also supply you with audio hardware.

This service is only available for chains exceeding 20 stores. Please contact us if you need further information.

Is it possible to obtain personalized “blanket” licenses for a certain period of time?

Definitely! BeatPick.com is willing to set up a “blanket” license for you, so as to provide you with as much music as you may need, for as long as you need, for a monthly fee.

For example, companies producing daily/weekly/monthly episodes of content can decide to fix a maximum number of tracks per month for a specific monthly fee.

This type of deal also comprehends ad hoc backend features we develop alongside the client in order to satisfy each specific requirement.

Does BeatPick.com include any artists who are not members of collecting societies?

Some clients, especially in Europe, seek for artists who are not inscribed to a collecting society, as this can make the licensing deal less expensive (depending on each country’s regulations). Many artists on BeatPick.com are not members of collecting society. If you would like to receive a link to hear some of these artists, please contact us specifying your preferred musical genre, and you will receive a selection within 48 hours.

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