How to use YouTube’s New Creator Music Library and licensing options.

If you are creating content on YouTube you’re probably going to be looking for some kind of music. This means you’ve also probably considered using the YouTube Creator Music Library. While the library is great there are some major new changes that have just been released that may make you consider using the YouTube Creator Library twice.

The YouTube Creator Music Library is one of the best free music libraries getting around and one that content creators use all the time. Recently YouTube announced a major overhaul of its licencing system, which would include new revenue-sharing options and an overhaul of the Creator Library in general. While this all sounds amazing there are some things you need to consider. While some changes are good there are some important things to be aware of.

There are now two different ways you can use music in the YouTube Creators Library and they are vastly different. Some of them don’t even seem worth using so make sure you deep dive into the songs you are using, but we’ll dive a little deeper into that shortly. For now, here are the three usage models you can choose from.

Revenue Sharing

This means you can use the music and share in a portion of the revenue generated. Using this option will split the 55% revenue share between you and the music creator. So you get 27.5% and they get 27.5% while YouTube gets their standard 45% cut. However, every additional track you add will split things even more. So you can ultimately end up with next to nothing…

While this option sounds decent you are sacrificing a hell of a lot of potential income for the life of the video. There’s a good chance purchasing a single-use license would work out far more profitably in the long run. For example, you may pay $20 to use a song and make that money back in a week or two. Then everything after that is profit.

However, with a revenue-sharing option, you would be splitting the money for the rest of that video's existence.

Licensable Tracks

This model is a fairly standard model and allows you to purchase a song to use for a set price. HOWEVER! You need to click the three dots next to each track, and then View usage details.

Here you need to pay attention to the Expiration date as well as the other terms. After the expiration date you will lose rights to the track and monetisation will be changed.

Some tracks have other strange conditions so make sure you pay attention to this. Some don’t allow use in Short, Live streams and a time limit, say 30 seconds of the song… Which is terrible…

The final thing is the original stack of content which is still available and remains unchanged. You can continue using this content as you previously have without any issues. For the time being, I would probably stick to using this stuff until the new YouTube Creator Libabry has been fully established and the rules are a little more set in stone.

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING. LICENSES CAN CHANGE AT ANY DATE WITHOUT WARNING.

Yep! That is correct, a license can change so there is a chance that your content may be affected. How it is affected could vary quite a lot but it’s something to be aware of. While the risks are considered low there’s no reason a creator can’t go rogue and change their mind.

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