Music library contract checklist

A checklist for composers and producers reading a production music library contract, whether the library is exclusive, non-exclusive or semi-exclusive. Fill in one copy per library (or per contract), and keep it with the signed contract.

This is practical guidance, not legal advice. For a real contract, ask a music lawyer in your country.

The deal at a glance

1. What you grant

• Is it a copyright assignment, a share of the publishing, or only a licence to represent the track?
• Does it cover the composition, the recording (master), or both?
• Does it cover alts, cutdowns (30 s, 60 s), instrumentals and stems as well as the main mix?
• Does it cover only the tracks listed, or anything "similar" you write later?

2. Exclusivity scope

• Exclusive against other libraries only, or against you too (can you still pitch and license the track yourself)?
• Can you place the same track in other non-exclusive libraries?
• Are any uses carved out for you (your own film work, your artist releases, live performance)?

3. Term and territory

• How long does the deal last: fixed years, automatic renewal, or in perpetuity?
• How is renewal ended (notice period, in writing)?
• Which territories: worldwide, or named countries?

4. Reversion

• Do the tracks come back to you after a set number of years?
• Do they come back if they earn nothing in a set period?
• Do you have to ask for reversion, or is it automatic?
• Do licences already granted keep running after reversion?
• Will the library remove its PRO registrations, retitles and Content ID references when the tracks revert?

5. Retitling

• May the library give the track a new title?
• Under what title and publisher name will it register the track, and with which societies?
• Will it register the audio with any fingerprinting service?
• Does it require the track to be unregistered, or ask you to change an existing registration?
• What happens to the retitled registration if you leave?

6. Content ID and fingerprinting

• Who may register the track in YouTube Content ID (or through a claiming service)?
• For non-exclusive deals: does the contract say the library will NOT register the track?
• Who releases a wrong claim, and how quickly?
• Are the library's distribution partners allowed to register the track?

7. Money

• Your share of each sync fee (%).
• How blanket, subscription or catalogue-wide licence income is shared with you.
• Who receives the publisher's share of performance royalties.
• Confirmation that the writer's share is not assigned away and stays paid to you by your society.
• Any fees, costs or deductions taken before your share is calculated.
• Any advance or upfront payment, and whether it is recoupable.

8. Direct licences and royalty-free sales

• Can the library issue direct (source) licences that replace performance royalties?
• If so, will it pay you a share of that fee and tell your society in time?
• Does the library sell the track as royalty-free? On what terms?

9. Accounting and audit

• How often you receive statements (monthly, quarterly, twice a year).
• What statements show: client, programme or use, territory, fee, date.
• Payment deadline after each statement period.
• Right to audit the library's books, with how much notice and how often.
• Who pays for an audit if errors are found.

10. Termination

• How you can end the deal, and with how much notice.
• How the library can end it.
• What happens to your tracks if the library is sold, merges or closes.
• What happens if the library breaches the contract (does not pay, does not account).

11. Approval rights

• Can you refuse certain uses (political ads, adult content, religious or other sensitive uses)?
• Can the library edit, remix or re-arrange the track without asking?

12. AI

• Can the library, its partners or its clients use your music to train AI models?
• Can they make AI-generated derivatives or voice clones from it?
• Is AI use refused by default, or does it need your explicit, separate consent?
• If allowed, how are you paid for it?

13. Samples and warranties

• What you promise about third-party material (samples, loops, sample packs).
• Whether you must list every sample pack used, with its licence.
• Whether stems may expose sampled material on its own (check the pack's licence).
• Who pays if a claim or lawsuit appears (indemnity), and up to what amount.

14. Credits and metadata

• How you are credited (name, IPI, society).
• Who files cue sheets, and whether you get copies.
• Who assigns ISRCs to the recordings.

Track register

Use one row per track and library, so you always know where each track is signed.

Before you sign

• I know exactly which tracks and versions the contract covers.
• I know whether I can still license these tracks myself.
• I know who may register them in Content ID.
• I know my sync fee share and who gets the publisher's share.
• I know when and how I get the tracks back.
• I have checked the AI clause.
• I have the licences for every sample I used.
• I have saved the signed contract with the tracks.