The world of music may appear to be all fun and games but when it comes down to copyright issues, the matter is switched completely.
Brands can’t utilize commercial music until and unless they gain particular permission for doing such. And that is especially true when it comes down to posts on social media. And when you’ve got such music available for use on creation tools for posts, the same rule applies.
The news comes as more and more record labels are filing lawsuits for copyright infringement and making use of unlicensed music for promotions and whatnot. They’re leaning more toward trends and that entails Reels and other types of short-form video content on the app that basically place emphasis on elements and music.
If you are not wary of such measures, you can really land in a sticky mess as recently confirmed by Bloomberg.
The perfect example put forward was for a leading energy drink producer called Bang. It gained huge success via aggressive as well as blingy social media strategies. It used some of the biggest names in the influencer industry too so it could better market the likes of its products on top apps like TikTok and Reels from Instagram.
But what it really failed to realize is that it just did not have the license to make use of the music that it put forward in nearly 100 videos. On that note, we saw it being slammed left and right with lawsuits related to the matter from leading American record labels. And the federal judge ended up ruling in the favor of such labels across both those cases.
This is solely one example and Bloomberg did go as far as mentioning how Warner Music ended up suing the firm that’s based in the UK called Iconic London. This was related to copyright infringement seen on various apps and posts too.
The great amount of enforcement for such copyright issues comes as social media platforms are now flagging a new focus for leading labels. In recent times, we saw some top names employing whole teams to go through online posts to check and see where unlicensed tracks were getting used for the work of others.
This has been the most active on apps like YouTube. Moreover, you’ll find labels now getting a share of the profits where their songs were used on posts without gaining consent.
But we’d like to note how YouTube has really changed the ordeal as a whole. It’s giving creators the chance to eliminate all violations linked to uploads as compared to reversing ad revenue directed to the labels. What we are seeing is that more importance is provided to music copyright infringements that are making this thing a huge priority to those having rights on the matter.
Now, TikTok may be the leading target in this endeavor. The app with its short-form video content is really turning into a major avenue for the production of music tracks. You’ll find some excellent songs being played as an integral part of different trends. Similarly, you’ll find huge careers beginning from the moment that the TikTok momentum began.
In general, this just allows the platform to incorporate easier ways to include tracks into the clips. As a marketer, you do need to be familiar with the matter around such ordeals to prevent breaking the law. It could cost you big time along the way.
But what exactly are the rules? As explained by TikTok, a business account that picks sounds seen in the bank for Commercial Music Library needs to get the right commercial license. They need to take in such sounds for the app for proper utilization.
Let’s not forget another very important matter. Business accounts are not going to be given the chance for reactions, sticking, or dueting with other user content that utilizes sounds located in the common music library.
This means TikTok can give you permission to use music, provide it arrives on the app’s Commercial Music Library for songs that come with the licensed label.
Read next: 62% of Facebook Users Are Scammed Weekly According to This Report
Brands can’t utilize commercial music until and unless they gain particular permission for doing such. And that is especially true when it comes down to posts on social media. And when you’ve got such music available for use on creation tools for posts, the same rule applies.
The news comes as more and more record labels are filing lawsuits for copyright infringement and making use of unlicensed music for promotions and whatnot. They’re leaning more toward trends and that entails Reels and other types of short-form video content on the app that basically place emphasis on elements and music.
If you are not wary of such measures, you can really land in a sticky mess as recently confirmed by Bloomberg.
The perfect example put forward was for a leading energy drink producer called Bang. It gained huge success via aggressive as well as blingy social media strategies. It used some of the biggest names in the influencer industry too so it could better market the likes of its products on top apps like TikTok and Reels from Instagram.
But what it really failed to realize is that it just did not have the license to make use of the music that it put forward in nearly 100 videos. On that note, we saw it being slammed left and right with lawsuits related to the matter from leading American record labels. And the federal judge ended up ruling in the favor of such labels across both those cases.
This is solely one example and Bloomberg did go as far as mentioning how Warner Music ended up suing the firm that’s based in the UK called Iconic London. This was related to copyright infringement seen on various apps and posts too.
The great amount of enforcement for such copyright issues comes as social media platforms are now flagging a new focus for leading labels. In recent times, we saw some top names employing whole teams to go through online posts to check and see where unlicensed tracks were getting used for the work of others.
This has been the most active on apps like YouTube. Moreover, you’ll find labels now getting a share of the profits where their songs were used on posts without gaining consent.
But we’d like to note how YouTube has really changed the ordeal as a whole. It’s giving creators the chance to eliminate all violations linked to uploads as compared to reversing ad revenue directed to the labels. What we are seeing is that more importance is provided to music copyright infringements that are making this thing a huge priority to those having rights on the matter.
Now, TikTok may be the leading target in this endeavor. The app with its short-form video content is really turning into a major avenue for the production of music tracks. You’ll find some excellent songs being played as an integral part of different trends. Similarly, you’ll find huge careers beginning from the moment that the TikTok momentum began.
In general, this just allows the platform to incorporate easier ways to include tracks into the clips. As a marketer, you do need to be familiar with the matter around such ordeals to prevent breaking the law. It could cost you big time along the way.
But what exactly are the rules? As explained by TikTok, a business account that picks sounds seen in the bank for Commercial Music Library needs to get the right commercial license. They need to take in such sounds for the app for proper utilization.
Let’s not forget another very important matter. Business accounts are not going to be given the chance for reactions, sticking, or dueting with other user content that utilizes sounds located in the common music library.
This means TikTok can give you permission to use music, provide it arrives on the app’s Commercial Music Library for songs that come with the licensed label.
Read next: 62% of Facebook Users Are Scammed Weekly According to This Report
