Synchronization, or sync, is an often-underestimated income source for musicians and authors. It’s the magical connection between music and visual media, like TV, ads, and films. Sync income varies based on factors like the platform and territory, and it has no standard fees. It’s swiftly accessible, and profits are shared among authors. In this blog post, we’ll explore the world of sync, how it works, and how artists can maximize this revenue stream to elevate their careers. Get ready to unravel the potential of sync with Thea Zaitsev.
Synchronization (sync) is one of the income streams that remains undervalued by many musicians and authors. Syncing music is the use of a piece of music in conjunction with moving images in TV shows, adverts and movies, played or synchronized alongside moving footage. In other words, it means putting music together with a picture.
To make a profit in sync two rights have to be cleaned: publishing and recording (master) rights. To get the right’s income you should be a member of collecting societies and register your songs there.
Sync agents represent the artist’s music and secures their sync license. Their purpose is to help the musician get the music placed, so they connect film producers with artists and work with music supervisors. Sync agents have music libraries which they use for pitching artists’ music.
Money in sync is usually paid out immediately. Thea Zaitsev, owner of the management and publishing company Pieces of 8 Music from Estonia, says that while it can take 1.5 years to monetize other income (TV, radio, Spotify, sales, etc.) that comes through various associations, sync takes a week. In the case of a license, there is income from performing royalties plus sync fees. There are no standard sync fees (unless you work with music libraries). It mostly depends on the media where music will be broadcast, the territory (your own country or world) and the term (usually 1 or 2 years).
Profit will be distributed among authors, so it’s extremely important to have a signed copyright agreement between band members. Thea Zaitsev pays attention to the important points when you have a deal with sync licensing:
- track name and music owner
- who are the donors
- project details (plot, language, length of usage, exact piece)
- territory (local stations, nationally, worldwide)
- scope (TV, web, video game, ad)
- term (1 week, 1 year or others)
- rights (exclusivity or which right the owner will give to the producer)
- representation or authority of contracting parties
- budget (you can offer yours if there was none)
Remember that you can claim income from sync even after 1 or 3 years depending on the country where it was broadcast.
*Сreated based on the materials of the lecture by Thea Zaitsev