Rights & Services
Master-Use License
A master-use license is permission from the recording owner to use a specific sound recording — needed for sync, samples, remixes, and any film, TV, or video use.
A master-use license grants permission to use a specific sound recording — the actual master — in another product. It comes from whoever owns the master (the artist or label), and there is no compulsory rate, so terms are negotiated.
You need one whenever you use the real recording rather than re-recording it: putting a track in a video or film, clearing a sample, or releasing a remix. Re-record the part yourself instead — an interpolation — and you skip the master-use license entirely, clearing only the composition.
Good to know
Master-Use License: common questions
- When do I not need a master-use license?
- When you don't use the original recording — for example a cover or interpolation where you record the part yourself. Then you only clear the composition.
- Who sets the price of a master-use license?
- It is negotiated with the recording owner — there is no statutory rate for a master-use license.