Songwriters always have a tough time finding collaborators or being able to afford to make high quality demos of their songs.
Musicians, vocalists & producers spend years honing their craft.
Everyone spends enormous amounts of time and money creating what they feel best reflects their talents.
As the corporate music industry struggles to find a new financially sustainable path, we offer additional choices to songwriters, musicians and producers.
Here they are able to offer up elements of what they have already made, what they do own, what they are great at - for a fair, reasonable and affordable price. Similar to the concept of sowing seeds, the goal is to legally enable others to use these elements to inspire new ideas, songs and recordings, where they find unlimited new life...and to have everyone be able to profit fairly from their work!
1. What do we mean by "Track?" While lots of people in music loosely use the term 'track' just to mean a song or an album cut, for our purposes, a Songsinc Track is a fully produced instrumental musical bed with no vocals, lyrics or discernible melody line. (Top)
2. What is a TrackOwner? A Songsinc TrackOwner is the copyright owner of the master recording of a Track available for download on the Songsinc TrackShop. We license the right from TrackOwners to make their Tracks available for TrackWriters to create new Songs.
Some TrackOwners create Tracks solely for this purpose. Others are artists, producers or record labels who own the rights to their existing recorded songs, remove the vocals and melodies from those masters and submit the remaining Tracks to us. Many TrackOwners are also the writers of the music and of the original song that the musical Track came from. (Top)
3. What is a TrackWriter? A Songsinc TrackWriter is anyone who downloads a Track from the Songsinc TrackShop and writes a new melody and/or lyric within that Track creating a new Song. (Top)
4. In the Terms & Conditions (T&C), what do we mean by "Song?" A Song is the new melody and lyric written by a Songsinc TrackWriter to a downloaded Songsinc Track. (Top)
5. In the T&C, what do we mean by "MixedSong?" A Songsinc Mixed Song is the combination of a Song and a Track resulting in a new combined recording. (Top)
6. How does the TrackOwner get paid? The TrackOwner earns 40% every download fee of one of his Tracks. This is in effect a licensing fee. (Top)
7. Do I own the Tracks I download? No. We are granting you a limited license on behalf of our TrackOwners for use of the Track you download for the purpose of inspiring a new Song and as a "sample" in the recording of the New Song Demo Master. (Top)
8. What is copyright of a Song? The copyright of a Song is the ownership in what is written and the legal right to the publishing interest in the Song. (Top)
9. What is copyright of Music Recording? The copyright of Music is the ownership in the actual recording of a Song and the legal right to sell or license that specific recording. (Top)
10. Do I own the Song I write using one of your Tracks? Not completely. You are collaborating with the TrackOwner. You will own 80% of the Writer Share and 80% of the Publisher Share of the new Song (melody & lyric) you create. You will be sharing the remaining 20% of the Writer Share of the new Song with whoever the writers are of the Track you used. Songsinc will retain the remaining 20% of the Publisher Share of the new Song to protect the TrackOwner and help you register and administrate on your behalf. (Top)
11. Do I own the rights to the Recorded Demo of a Song I wrote using one of your Tracks? NO...unless you do a Rights Buy-In (see #18 below). We give you full permission to use the recorded Demo for any and all promotional purposes only. This means you can use it to send to friends and feature in any online player on streaming sites. You can use it to submit for writer critiques online and at music conventions. You can present it as a demo to showcase your songwriting ability to publishers. You can submit it for some song contests, as long as the contest rules or prizes do not require 100% ownership in the song or assigning 100% ownership in the song or assigning away rights to the recording unless you do a Rights Buy-In. (Top)
12. Who owns the new Recorded Demo? The ownership in the new recorded Demo are co-owned & controlled equally by the TrackOwner and Songsinc, unless the TrackWriter transacts a Rights Buy-In of the Track for their new Song (see below). TrackWriters can certainly re-create the recording of the song and not use the Track, in which case the recording would be theirs, but the song itself is still co-written by them and the TrackOwner. Why? Because they inspired you with their track just as if they were sitting with you collaborating in person as you were writing your new lyric & melody to their music. (Top)
13. Can I sell the Recorded Demo of a Song I wrote using one of your Tracks like digital downloads? No. You do not own the master Recorded Demo and therefore it is not yours to sell, unless you Buy-In those rights from the TrackOwner.
If you transact a Rights Buy-In, you will be allowed to sell your Demo Master of your Song yourself. (Top)
14. Someone wants to record my Song and asks me to send them the backing Track I downloaded from Songsinc so they can sing to it. Can I do this?
NO! You may never do this. You do not own the instrumental Track and therefore can't offer the Track without vocals as an instrumental. If someone wants to do this, please contact us and we will be happy to arrange a limited license for them to use the Track with the TrackOwner so they can record your Song. (Top)
15. Can I write more than one Song with the same Track? Yes! You can write as many different melodies and lyrics as you like to the same Track. You are limited only by your own imagination and creativity. Each becomes its own separate Mixed Song, each gets Vault Dated by us as a separate Mixed Song and each is governed by the same rules spelled out more fully in our Terms & Conditions here. The TrackOwner would receive only one download fee percentage, but he would receive his 20% Writer Share on EACH Song created from that same Track. However, if you wanted to have the rights to sell the recording of each song you made you would half to pay for a Rights Buy-In each time, as the Buy-In rights to the Track is specific to the Song. Why? See #17 below. (Top)
16. How do I protect my Song? Once you have created a Mixed Song with one of our Tracks you send it to us and we Vault Date it, saving it to a named & numbered file with the date we received it. This helps protect your copyright and can act as an additional evidentiary witness of your Song submission in the event of a copyright dispute. (Top)
17. What is a Limited License "Rights Buy-In"? A Rights Buy-In is a limited non-exclusive license giving the TrackWriter more ownership rights and control to the New Song Demo Master. A Buy-In license right is purchased for an additional fee based on Membership status. It is most similar to licensing a portion of a recording for use as a sample. (Top)
18. How does a "Rights Buy-In" on a TrackShop Song work? A TrackWriter may choose to pay an additional fee to license the right to more fully use the downloaded Track within the the body of their completed New Song Demo Recording. When they opt for a limited Rights Buy-In, TrackWriters receive commercial rights to sell the recording via digital downloads, CD sales, etc. and they become the Master Owner of that New Song Demo Recording (Songsinc and the TrackOwner are the Master Owners without a Buy-In). The Rights Buy-In ONLY governs the complete recording of the New Song and never allows for the Track alone to be owned, licensed or sold, as it always belongs to the original TrackOwner. (Top)
19. If I pay for a "Rights Buy-In" on a TrackShop Song, am I still sharing co-write credit with the TrackOwner? YES. The writer of the TrackOwner's Track always has 20% of the Writer Share of any New Song you write using their Track, like any collaborating creator. A Buy-In just gives you commercial rights and control of the recording of the New Song Demo that you make using that Track. (Top)
20. If I pay for a "Rights Buy-In" on a TrackShop Song, can I use that Rights Buy-In for any other Songs that I might write using that Track? NO. A Rights Buy-In is Song specific. If you use one Track to write 40 different Songs, you'd have to pay 40 separate times to have commercial rights to each Demo Master as each Song is seen as a separate entity. But if you wanted to get your jollies by writing 40 different Songs to one Track and use it only promotionally you sure could and never pay more than the first download fee!
The intent of the Buy-In is for the right to have ownership in the New Demo Master recording the TrackWriters make of their new Song ONLY. You can't license or offer the Track separately to other performers to cut their various recordings of the Song, it is still a limited license with YOU and you alone, and it is always non-exclusive, and only pertains to the New Demo Masters you identify and Vault with Songsinc. (Top)
21. What does "Non-Exclusive" mean? It means that you are not the only person who will be allowed or licensed to use the same Track. The original TrackOwner always retains ownership in his Track, which he is licensing a limited right for you to use as a sample to make your new Song or Demo Recording. You understand that many other people may also use the same Track in the same way, thinking of other Songs to make with it that are different from yours! (Top)
22. How do I get the co-writer information? When you opt for a Rights Buy-In, we will provide you with the correct writer credits, Track sample credits and any PRO affiliation information you will need on the completed Rights Buy-In License Agreement. (Top)
23. What are the current costs of a Rights Buy-In? Current rates are:
Rights Buy-In Fees to TrackWriters (on TrackWriter Vaulted Songs Only): Number 1 Member: $100 Top 20 Member: $150
24. Do I have to re-submit my Recorded Demos for Vault Dating if I make new versions? Yes. We do this to protect everyone, primarily you! We link all the versions to the original Vault Date ID number. This way it links the copyright verification and we know the Track was already licensed by you and whatever new version is being used with permission! It's free so just do it! (Top)
25. Should I register my Song with a Performing Rights Organization ("PRO"), such as BMI, ASCAP or SESAC? The PRO's themselves suggest you only register songs with them when there are actually performance royalties for them to collect. When you have radio airplay or actual performance in films, TV or commercials, then there is something for the PRO to collect. Filing with a PRO should not be confused with protecting copyright. (Top)
26. If I want to register my Song with a PRO, how do I fill out the owner or authorship of the Song? If you need your Song set up at the PROs, we will do this for you for free at the PROs in the USA to set them up correctly. If you are registered at a PRO outside the US, we will also provide you with a copy of how we set up the Song in the US systems so you can have your Song set up the same way in your territory PRO. If you're confused at all Ask us! We are always here to respond and help you with the correct information in any way we can. We do protect the privacy of all our Members as best we can, but provide the most accurate information we have to properly credit Songs when needed. (Top)
27. Does Songsinc offer Publishing Deals? We do offer Exclusive Publishing agreements for Songs we feel strongly about being able to actively work. We hear all the Songs submitted to us for Vault Dating, in their rawest form and when better recorded versions are re-Vaulted with us. If we hear major potential, and think that we can serve the song well, we will offer the writer a publishing agreement for the Song. From time to time we will also consider material created by our Members apart from TrackShop created Songs. Please note we are NOT a Music Library or service that wishes to stock up on publishing! Your song may be phenomenal, but in a genre that we know is not our area of expertise to work to its best potential, in which case we would be doing you no favor by taking your publishing. If you would like us to consider your existing material, please contact us here at . (Top)
28. If a TrackWriter accepts a Publishing Deal, what happens to the TrackOwner's 20% of Writer Share? TrackOwners understand and agree that they allow the TrackWriters to determine the path and disposition of the New Song they create to their Track. They do not stand in the way of song placements or publishing deals. The TrackOwner writer always receives his co-writer credit and his 20% Writer Share. If you do any deal, you would advise the publisher there is a 20% co-writer and provide the co-writer information that we give you. You should also give them our contact information. In any publishing deal (whether with us or anyone else) you are giving up some or all of your Publishing Share in a Song, but you and the TrackOwner writer always have your 80/20 Writer Shares! If anyone tries to talk you into signing over any of your Writer Shares on any song - RUN! (Top)
29 Can a TrackWriter edit and/or embellish TrackShop Tracks they download? The simple answer is yes. For example, TrackWriters may edit in or out an additional verse, chorus or bridge or overlay other instruments on top of the original instrumentation when creating the New Song Demo Master. However, they never own the embellished/changed Track - it can only be used with the New Song Demo Master – and the altered Track may never be used as an instrumental. Further, if an outside producer is hired by a TrackWriter to embellish or edit the original Track, the producer may only do so as a "Work For Hire" that clearly states he will have no rights whatsoever to the altered/embellished Track.
Many times the TrackOwners hear the new embellishments and like them enough to want to arrange with you to put your embellished version up in TrackShop and become a TrackOwner with you in the new version. (Top)
30. Do I need to pay the Producer, Musicians or Singers who performed on the Track and/or New Demo Master a percentage of any Track or New Demo Master earnings? If a Producer, Singer and/or Musician signed a “Work For Hire” contract with you that stated the Demo Master they are producing, playing and/or singing on may be exploited for commercial profit and you will not be liable for any royalty or other payments to them after paying them for the session only, then you are not required to do so. Also, the notion if a session is not on “card” (recorded for the musicians union) then it’s considered a “Work For Hire” is not accurate. If it’s not in writing, it’s not binding. Bottom line: we always encourage our Members to fairly compensate the musicians, singers and producers or get it clearly in writing that these are Works For Hire, as well as pay union AFofM whenever possible. (Top)
31. How Do I Upgrade My Free Membership to a Number 1 Membership? On the Songsinc Home Page, click on “Membership Information”. This will take you to the Membership page. Click on Number 1, Accept the Terms Of Use and Add the upgraded Membership to your cart and check-out. The next time you log-in you will be recognized as a Number 1 Member with the privileges and reduced download & Rights Buy-In fees this brings you!(Top)
