Understanding Music Licensing for Your Corporate Video Production

by | Sep 6, 2018

In the industry, a corporate video production gets a bit of a bad reputation. Because of its nature, corporate videos are often seen as boring and dragging, for the audience and the people who work on it.

However, when done right, a great corporate video production can be a huge asset to any company. It’s a great way to showcase your company’s culture and vision, as well as a way to connect with your audience and potential future employees.

The main question is, how do you elevate the quality of a corporate video production without having to shell out thousands in addition to your existing budget? For one, you have to work with a video production house that understand exactly what you need out of your video, and knows how to bring that idea to life.

Next, you need a great soundtrack to really drive the point of your video home. When it comes to using music in a video, you have to be careful about the licensing issues that come with it.

If you end up using licensed music that you don’t have the permission to use, you may end up getting your video taken down, or worst case scenario, sued. If you’re looking to include some form of music in your corporate video production, here are some tips to help you out.

Music by commercial or popular artists

You may have clients that tell you that they want the latest chart-topping hit playing in the background of their video. It makes sense to do this since having a well known song playing in the background can really help connect with the audience.

However, all forms of commercial music cannot be used for your own commercial purposes, unless you have a public performance license. Unfortunately, this type of license is expensive, and cannot be used as background music for your videos since this type of license is only available for public radio play.

Free music

Since you’re on a budget, it would make more sense to look for free music, right? After all, if it’s free, it can really help free up some budget for other production needs. However, you have to think twice before deciding on using free music.

It might come with its own set of attached strings, such as ads. Or it could be low quality music that won’t sit well alongside a high quality corporate video production.

Licensing royalty-free music

The best solution for your music needs is by purchasing a license to royalty free music. This means that you only have to make a one time payment for the license to use the music for however long it can be used for.

The tracks that you find are usually of great quality, and you don’t have to worry about any fine print or agreements just to use the track for your video.