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DISTRIBUTION, MONETIZATION & STREAMING FAQ
Distribution
Music distribution is sending music to digital service providers (DSPs) like Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Spotify via an aggregator/distributor (like Jamvana).
Jamvana delivers audio to DSPs at 44.1kHz/16-bit WAV. We distribute videos in MOV and MP4 formats. Both audio and video formats are the industry standard, so you can be sure that your music and video is being distributed to the highest quality.
Why do I need a distributor like Jamvana to get my music on Apple Music and Spotify?
You need a music distributor like Jamvana because Spotify, Apple Music, and other digital service providers don’t allow direct uploading to their platform. Distributors like Jamvana have very specific contracts with each distributor that outline how they’re collecting royalties, what percentage, and much more.
Additionally, your aggregator packages all your metadata (song titles, collaborators, ISRC/ISWC, etc.) and sends it to each service provider. This packaging is to ensure music available on their platform looks and sounds consistent.
You need a music distributor like Jamvana because Spotify, Apple Music, and other digital service providers don’t allow direct uploading to their platform. Distributors like Jamvana have very specific contracts with each distributor that outline how they’re collecting royalties, what percentage, and much more.
Additionally, your aggregator packages all your metadata (song titles, collaborators, ISRC/ISWC, etc.) and sends it to each service provider. This packaging is to ensure music available on their platform looks and sounds consistent.
Music distribution is used by independent artists, bands, and record labels.
Once you’ve created an account and signed your agreement, an account manager will reach out to answer any questions you have. You can then follow this guide and begin distributing your music.
Jamvana offers multiple plans to fit each user’s need. We also provide additional add-on services and sub-accounts.
You can also learn more through The Vana Room’s episode on music distribution below.
You will need a music distributor when you release your music to various digital service providers. Before you upload your music to Jamvana, we recommend having your audio in 44.1kHz/16-bit WAV; artwork in 3000×3000 JPG; and videos in MOV or MP4 format.
Digital service providers recommend 3 weeks (21 business days) for a smooth release to their platform. This gives them optimal time to process your release before it goes live.
ISRC stands for international standard recording code. This code is attached to every recording and used to identify the sound recordings. Note that this is different than the composition/lyrics of a track. See ISWC for that. Jamvana will provide free ISRCs for your tracks.
Your ISRC will be assigned to your track before it’s distributed. We recommend you write this number down in a spreadsheet with your catalog so it’s easily accessible when needed.
Learn about music metadata below.
UPC stands for universal product code and is used to identify a collection of works. Think of a compilation album. That entire work will have a UPC, and each track within the compilation album will have its own ISRC/ISWC.
Learn about music metadata below.
Yes. We will obtain the mechanical license for you.
Monetization
Monetization refers to a product earning money. In music, monetizing your music can be done through streaming, sync licensing, YouTube, TikTok, and more.
There are multiple ways to monetize your music, but one of the first steps is finding the right music distributor. Once you’ve released your music through Jamvana, we will collect a portion of the royalties earned through streaming services.
SoundCloud, YouTube, Vimeo, Twitch, DailyMotion, and all the streaming services allow monetization.
Publishing
There are four different types of royalties in music publishing. They include mechanical royalties, public performance royalties, synchronization royalties, and print music (sheet music).
There are four (4) different types of royalties, each derived from a separate and distinct copyright. The four potential sources of royalty revenue in the music recording and publishing industry are:
Mechanical royalties: paid from record companies for record sold based on the exclusive to reproduce and distribute copyrighted works.
Public performance royalties: paid by music users for songs in the operation of their businesses and broadcasts based on the exclusive right to perform publicly copyrighted works.
Synchronization fees: paid by music users for synchronizing music with their visual images based on the exclusive right to reproduce and distribute copyrighted works and to prepare derivative works of copyrighted material.
Print music income: paid by music printers for sheet music and folios based on the exclusive right to distribute copies of copyrighted material.
Yes. You do need a music publisher in order to collect your publishing royalties. However, you do not need to sign a publishing deal. You can set up your own publishing company.
In the United States, you’ll need to sign up to BMI, ASCAP, or SESAC. They will collect your public performance royalties in the US. To collect royalties outside of the United States, we recommend signing up with Songtrust to collect your publishing royalties. Every country functions very differently, and Songtrust has contracts with virtually every country in the world.
Streaming
Digital streaming is when someone watches a video online or listens to music via an online streaming service, like Spotify. Digital streaming can be done via a mobile device, computer, or tablet.
What platforms are streaming services?
Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, iHeartRadio, TIDAL, Amazon Music, Deezer, Google Play, and Napster are all considered music streaming services.
How does streaming benefit my brand?
Music is everywhere. We hear it in TV shows, movies, and at other public places. When someone finds a song they like, they’ll most likely look it up and add it to their library or playlist. Every time someone listens to your music, you’ll receive a royalty payment.
Making your music available for fans to find and enjoy is a great way to connect with people who resonate with your message. Jamvana recommends distributing your music to the services that make the most sense for your brand.
A playlist is a curated list of music. Any person or company can be a curator and create a playlist.
Streams that are not produced by real people listening to music are called Artificial Streams. This is usually made possible by software programs – bots – that are programmed to play a track over and over again to inflate its stream count and royalties. Artificial streams are also known as streaming fraud, stream-farming, abnormal streaming activity or streaming manipulation.
Most streaming services operate on a “shared pool” model for royalties, which splits all of their income according to the total number of streams generated. When people manipulate stream counts, they’re practically stealing money from this shared royalty pool. This means legitimate artists get less from their rightfully earned royalties.
These days, significant engineering resources and research are put into detecting, mitigating, and removing artificial activity on the streaming services. With Jamvana, we have over the years implemented a sophisticated system to detect and monitor artificial streams on music released through our digital distribution service.
Actors like Spotify have for some time practiced withholding royalties generated by artificial streams, as well as requesting release and catalog takedowns to deter people from engaging in streaming fraud.
Starting in early 2024, Spotify will start charging labels and distributors per track when obvious artificial streaming is detected on their upload. This means owners of affected releases will be fined in their turn. Please note that these measures from Spotify affect every distributor, not only Jamvana, and this is the only information we’ve been provided with.
Don’t use third-party-promotional services that guarantee streams, views or followers, and be extra careful about which other services you use to boost or market your music.
If you’ve recently embarked on a promotional spree and Spotify gives you a heads-up or we warn you about some fishy activity, it’s time to hit the brakes. Pause any ongoing promotion as soon as possible.
Keep an eye on those playlists. You can dive into your Spotify for Artists account, click on Music, then Playlists, and check under ‘Listener – Playlists made by Spotify listeners’. Watch out for red flags like playlists featuring only unknown artists but boasting a ton of followers, or playlists with suspiciously low followers but raking in sky-high streams. And beware of playlist names that sound too good to be true, like “Top Tracks in USA” or “New Drake Music”. If something smells fishy, it probably is.
Here are some other signs of sketchy playlists:
* They only feature unknown artists but have a hefty following.
* They have a small number of followers but somehow manage to rack up a massive number of streams.
* The playlist name seems off or misleading.
* Certain artists dominate the playlist, or the same artists pop up in multiple playlists from the same curator.
* The curator has a bunch of playlists with similar follower counts, but their own follower count is suspiciously low.
* The curator’s followers have odd, often similar names and no profile pictures.
If you’re an Jamvana artist, or label, our support is always here to give advice. We also appreciate any tips of illegitimate promotion services, so we can help other artists stay clear from them.
Do your homework before diving into any promotional activities. Research the heck out of them to make sure they’re legit. Trust us, it’ll save you a world of trouble down the line.
If you find yourself on a suspicious playlists, don’t panic. Reach out directly to us, or the DSP to get yourself removed from the playlist.
Artists & Label Services
To get started, head to the Spotify for Artists website and create an account. Once your account is created and set up, you’ll see any pending releases that Jamvana has sent to Spotify.
Record labels can add multiple team members to their Spotify for Artists account. Check out Spotify’s label onboarding guide for more information.
Spotify’s delivery lead time is five business days. Jamvana recommends you submit your music at least three weeks in advance. This gives us and Spotify time to process your release ahead of its release date.
Payments
Digital service providers like Apple Music and Spotify list your music on their platform for their users to listen to. When your song is streamed by a user, the service provider will collect that data, take a percentage, and report it to Jamvana. Once we receive those reports, we’ll process your payment and send it to your account.
We typically pay out your royalties as soon as they become available to us. However, the digital service providers operate on a quarterly basis. This means that we receive money from them four times per year at the end of each quarter.
Service providers must calculate payments for nearly 100 million tracks every quarter. These payments are then sent to music distributors and publishers. Once the publishers and distributors receive payments from the service providers, they must do their own accounting which can oftentimes cause delays.
Yes. Jamvana offers direct deposit, Stripe, and PayPal.
Copyright
According to the US Copyright Office, “Copyright is a type of intellectual property that protects original works of authorship as soon as an author fixes the work in a tangible form of expression.” In music, there are two different types of copyright: One for the sound recording, and one for the composition/lyrics. For more information on how these are broken down, check out The Vana Room’s episode on copyright rules below.
Yes! Anytime you collaborate with anyone, you should have a detailed collaboration agreement. We don’t recommend releasing music without signing agreements first. Reach out to an entertainment attorney for specific questions about collaboration agreements.
Watch The Vana Room’s overview of copyrights below.
According to NOLO, “Fair use is the right to copy a portion of a copyrighted work without permission because your use is for a limited purpose, such as for educational use in a classroom or to comment upon, criticize, or parody the work being sampled.”
If you’re unsure if your song is fair use, we recommend reaching out to an entertainment attorney for help.
Creative Commons is a nonprofit organization that helps content creators share their works properly when making it available for public use. The organization provides different types of licenses depending on what the creator wants their work to be used for.
For more information, visit their website.