Nowadays, we see a huge amount of video, audio, visual files in free access. Does this mean that we can use these files for our own benefit? As a rule, an ordinary user does not think about it, for example, downloading a song or using a picture found on the Internet as an illustration for a post. However, sometimes it can lead to serious legal problems and even legal proceedings. If your activity is related to the media or the use of materials for commercial benefit, it is worth investigating the issue of licensing and fair use of the content.
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What Is Royalty-Free Content?
First, let’s find out what royalty-free music is because this term is often misunderstood. In fact, royalty-free music is a type of content license that allows the buyer to pay for it only once and use it for as long and as necessary.
For example, you buy royalty-free background music on LesFM for integration with a video that you intend to broadcast on your Youtube channel. You will pay a fixed amount, regardless of whether you have 10 subscribers or 10 million if you use it one day or five years. Alternatively, you may buy a song license to use on a radio or TV. You will also pay once, regardless of how many times the ad is played: once a week or 10 times a day, for one month or two years.
Therefore, you need to understand that the definition of royalty-free music does not mean that this content is free. It can be both paid and free. It all depends on the type of license for a particular song. The author of a music track decides for oneself what type of license the creation will have.
Types Of Royalty-Free Music Licenses
For free music, there are two large groups that cover different types of licenses:
- Public domain – it is everything that is not licensed: all the music that is copyright-free, voluntarily provided by the author for general use, never licensed or the license of the work has expired. This content can be used for any, including commercial, purposes, but it is always marked as public domain.
- Music protected by free licenses – it differs from the public domain in that the author sets restrictions on the reproduction, distribution, and copying of the piece of work.
The most widespread of the free licenses is the CC or Creative Commons classification system, created in 2001 by a group of people tired of many different licenses. Creative Commons licenses grant certain rights to third parties who will use music in their projects or videos under certain conditions.
If you want to get more information about the royalty-free content – contact the lawyer. Alternatively, you can leave your questions below.
If you are interested in even more entertainment-related articles and information from us here at Bit Rebels, then we have a lot to choose from.
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