Using Music for YouTube

One of the main reasons we set up purple-planet.com was to provide a source of music for youtube videos. The subject of music usage in films of any type is complicated, and with the abundance of media types now available, not getting any easier.

Essentially, all musical works are copyrighted (literally, the right to copy). Copyright does not have to be ‘registered’ as many seem to think – it just comes into being with the creation of any artistic work – and belongs to the creator of that work. Copyright is rarely transferred and only lapses after a significant period of time (at a minimum in many countries, 50 years, often more). There is essentially no such thing as 'copyright free music'.

If you have created original music solely yourself, the copyright is yours. You can use it in virtually any way you want, including on a youtube film. If you do not own the copyright, strictly speaking, you need to licence it from whoever holds the copyright. Though the word ‘license’ sounds rather grand and suggests a wad of paperwork, it means nothing much more fancy than an ‘agreement’ between the copyright holder and you, the user.

Let’s say you have a short film of your cat "Tiddles" performing a trick on a skateboard. You think her feline skills would benefit from a bit of musical accompaniment. What are the options?

OK, on the simplest level: let’s say your brother has made a music track that he’s called “Zombie Cat” (his own composition) and you ask whether you can use it for the video. Technically, if he grunts ‘Yeah, ok”, you have a licence. It might be legally more satisfactory if this agreement was in writing, but, strictly speaking, it’ll do. At the other end of the scale, you know a Led Zeppelin track that would fit the bill for your film just nicely. You’ve spent good money buying a legit CD of their music – why can’t you use it for your video?

The answer lies in the licence between you and Led Zeppelin when you brought the CD. The clue is in that tiny writing usually to be found around the outside of the CD disc itself – all that stuff about “No unauthorised copying, performance, broadcasting....etc....etc...” That’s your licence – and effectively it says you can’t do anything with the contents of the CD apart from...well...listen to it yourself. Under the terms of this licence you can’t run off copies for your mates, allow others to download the tracks from your blog or whatever, play the CD in the restroom at your workplace, or use it to accompany Tiddles on her YouTube epic.