FAQ’s
What does MMD do?
MMD is a non-exclusive distributor-for-hire that:
...distributes music files directly to an international network of legitimate digital music services, including the largest online retailers such as iTunes, Napster, Rhapsody/Real Networks, Puretracks, eMusic, MusicNet and many others.
...distributes music files directly into many of the genre specific retailers, such as Beatport, 3 Beat Digital Network, Vonyc and many more.
MMD is a non-exclusive marketing company-for-hire that:
...offers marketing services including Banner Advertisement, Geo-Targeted Email Blasts, Branded Marketing Campaigns, Ad Supported Downloads, Radio Spins, Premium Placement Services and more.
MMD is not:
...an online CD retailer. We distribute music to digital download services.
...a record label. We are a distribution company, period. We don't supply manufacturing, tour support, and other services of traditional record labels.
...just a 'middle man.' We encode and deliver MMD releases, manage relationships with many different types of retailers, fulfil orders from CD retailers and provide MMD artists and labels with up-to-date online accounting tools.
...an advertiser and thus, MMD does not speculate, either through investment (monetary or service related) except where a contest or giveaway has been organized by MMD to giveaway services to current and/or potential clients.
What basic things
should I know?
Do I have to be at
least 18 years old to get an account?
No! But you do have to be at least 18 years old to do a financial transaction. If you have albums you'd like to put into our service and you are under 18 years old, ask for help from a parent or guardian.
How is music stored
on a computer?
A computer has a hard drive that stores data. From pictures to music to word processing files, its all just data to a computer. Software programs allow you to use and view the data however you need to, as pictures or text or music. iTunes is software from Apple Computer, Inc., that lets you store, organize, buy and play music.
All music lives on computers as data in digital files. Files live in folders throughout your computer. All files and folders have names, but files end in a three- or four-letter "extension" found after the "dot" (.) in the file name. Most PC computers show these extensions, but most Apple computers do not. Music can be stored in many ways, and the extension tells you and the computer how that file is stored. Some ways of storage "compress" the data to keep the size down (sometimes resulting in loss of sound quality).
For music files, the most common extensions are:
· .WAV = Not compressed at all, these large files are playable on most any computer as well as some CD players.
· .AIFF = A large file very similar to .WAV, also used on normal music CDs and playable on any CD player.
· .MP3 = A music file compressed to a small size. This is the most common form of music compression found today (see Compression).
· AAC = A compressed, small file format. The AAC name only sometimes appears as an extension. More commonly, AAC files carry one of two different extensions: .M4A, which is what iTunes software creates when you rip a disc into AAC, and .M4P, which the "protected" file that iTunes music stores sell and you download to your hard drive. MMD strongly recommends you rip your music into 320 kbps AAC format for best results.
· .FLAC = A larger but still compressed file that has no loss of sound quality: "lossless" compression.
· Apple Lossless = Although this carries a ".M4A" extension just like AACs, this format (sometimes called ALE) is compressed, but in such a way that nothing is lost: "lossless" compression. It is the highest quality music format that iTunes can produce.
What should I know
about compression?
Music files primarily come in two varieties: "compressed" and "uncompressed." An uncompressed music file is the music stored as faithfully as the computer can hold it, just like the music on normal audio CDs. These are large files and hold every scrap of data the computer needs to reproduce the music as closely as it can to the original recording. These files are often named with .WAV or .AIFF extensions.
Since these files are large and in most cases contain data not necessary in order to have the computer reproduce your music at an acceptable level of sound quality, they are often "compressed" into smaller files. Compression is a kind of shortcut, and in most cases even a trained ear cannot tell the difference between music reproduced from a compressed or uncompressed file. Music files that have been compressed are often given .MP3 and AAC (.M4A) and .FLAC extensions.
Here's how it works. An audio CD you buy at a record store has data on it, and a CD player knows how to read that data and turn it back into music. The amount of data on an audio CD for just one song is quite large: around 35 to 60 megabytes per song, depending on the length of the song. But a lot of that data is unnecessary: it's possible to "compress" big data files into smaller, more manageable sizes. Sure you lose some information, but mostly the unimportant stuff that most people won't miss. After compression, the 35 to 60 MB file gets much smaller: only 3 to 7 MB.
But not all compression is the same. Compressions can be very subtle. If a compressed music file retains 100% of the original sound, it's called "lossless" (no sound quality is lost in compression), such as Apple Lossless files. An Apple Lossless (.M4A) file is smaller than a .WAV or .AIFF, but it's still quite large. The smaller the file is compressed, the more data is lost, the less faithfully a computer can reproduce the music. Usually this is represented by a number called the "sampling rate," which describes how much data (in groups of one thousand bytes) is captured from the music by the computer in any given second. The number is abbreviated "kilobits per second" or "kbps." Here are common compressions and their impact on the music:
· .WAV or .AIFF = Uncompressed
Generally, the higher the kbps, the better
the reproduction, but the larger the file.
What should I know
about 'ripping' and uploading?
However you normally store your music (on a compact disk, on
reel-to-reel tape, on a cassette, on vinyl record, etc.), the most common way
to get it into your computer is to "rip" it, or as Apple says,
"Import." Ripping almost always begins with a regular audio CD placed
in the disk drive in your computer, then software like iTunes is told to
"import" or "rip" the songs. Even music you get off the
Internet or from other computers in a network was probably ripped some time in
the past by someone else (EXCEPTIONS: music created on a computer in the first
place, or music you enter into your computer directly, through a microphone or
electronic instrument).
If your music isn't yet on your computer but is on an audio CD, you'll need to rip it yourself to get it onto your computer. Many software programs let you rip music, and they all give you a choice how to rip it. Don't have any ripping software? MMD recommends the FREE iTunes software created by Apple Computer, Inc., and available on both Mac and PC: "iTunes."
·
256 kbps AAC files OR BETTER (.M4A) NOTE: 320
kbps AAC files is the MMD preferred format
·
Apple Lossless/ALAC (.M4A)
If you have a CD of your songs and want to rip and upload them to MMD for delivery to iTunes and the other stores, please see our Rip/Upload Tutorial
"Burning" is "encoding" in the opposite direction. Digital information stored in digital files [like MP3] can be "burned" onto physical CDs for playback on everyday CD players
What should I know
about UPC and ISRC numbers?
UPC
If we assign you a UPC/Barcode, your UPC will appear on your My Discography page very shortly after you complete your payment has been received. You are free to use it for your physical CDs as well at no extra charge. You can continue using it even if you are no longer a MMD customer. MMD will never re-use your UPC/Barcode number. If you want it, it's yours forever.
IMPORTANT: UPCs and barcodes issued by MMD are for you to use, now and forever. But they are just for you. Please don't resell them! There are penalties for reselling to discourage this: you'll have to pay a $25.00 (U.S. dollars) fee plus all the revenue you received from the sale of the UPC or barcode or both, and MMD can take this money from the proceeds of music sales. Please keep the UPC and barcode what they are meant to be: a free and convenient part of the MMD experience for you, the MMD client.
ISRC
How do I register
ISRCs for my tracks?
MMD is one of only a handful of companies that have been given permission from the RIAA to assign ISRCs. If you haven't already received ISRCs from a third party, MMD will assign ISRCs to your tracks, free of charge, and register them with the RIAA [Recording Industry Association of America] and IFPI [International Federation of the Phonographic Industry], as part of our regular service. If you're a current MMD artist or label, we've already assigned ISRCs to your MMD-distributed releases, unless we have received a response to this email instructing us otherwise. Current MMD artists / labels: you can view your ISRCs in your Artist & Label Area.
Both your UPC/Barcode and ISRC numbers will be used on your "My Account" page in calculating and displaying how many songs and albums sold.
If mmd distributes my music ...
With all of our Distribution Packages, MMD will use the industry's leading digital encoding company to encode your music and send your tracks for sale to our digital distribution partners, including iTunes, Napster, Rhapsody / Real and many more.
Can you guarantee
that all of MMD's distribution partners will carry my music?
All of our distribution partners reserve the right to refuse to carry any particular release, so we cannot give you a 100% guarantee. But those exceptions are rare.
Digital Track
Distribution
All of our DMS partners are committed to carrying the entire
MMD catalog. Due to the time-consuming nature of encoding and delivering tracks
and track information to meet the specifications of many different DMSs
[imagine converting your entire CD collection to MP3, multiplied by several
thousand], some DMSs are further along than others in adding our catalog.
How do I get my music
in to the stores/services I chose?
How do I deliver my
albums and songs to MMD?
All MMD customers deliver their music using the MMD Web tool to upload directly to us as fast as your Internet connection lets you. You will need a free, no-obligation account. Then, from the My Discography page, just click Add Album and you're ready to go. You'll be asked to enter in all the information we'll need to delivery your album. You'll eventually be asked to upload your music. It's easy, though it also helps to have high-speed broadband Internet and a reliable computer. Even if your connection to the Internet drops, the songs you've uploaded will be saved and the rest you can upload later, when your connection comes back. If you have a CD of your songs and want to rip and upload them to MMD for delivery to iTunes and the other stores, please see our Rip/Upload Tutorial.
What if I attempt to
upload something in a format MMD can't accept, and what if my upload gets
interrupted?
We analyze all files uploaded--all of them. If we find it's corrupted or it's anything other than a 256 kbps AAC (.M4A) (or better), 320 kbps .MP3 file (or better) or Apple Lossless file, we'll notify you. You can then try to upload them again.
Don't worry if any of your uploads are interrupted! Any song that you uploaded successfully will still be there. You'll only have to resend the song that got interrupted. The album and its information will be intact, awaiting your return.
If I choose to
deliver my music to MMD via CD, why do I need to deliver five physical CDs to
MMD if I just want digital distribution?
We use one CD to encode your music into a digital file format, which we then distribute to our DMS partners. We send one CD to the All Music Guide, the world's most comprehensive online database of CD releases. We submit one CD to our in-house A&R team - MMD always keeps its ears open for emerging talent and helps it grow. The remaining two CDs are filed in MMD's archives as back-up copies.
Information for
Labels
MMD was specifically created for use by Record Labels and distributors. With one label or distributor account you can:
All of the titles you enter via MMD will appear only under your one account. When you log in, you will see all of your release titles, album cover graphics, song titles, order of songs on each title/release, UPC for each title/release and the ISRC for each song, all under your one account.
When you go to your My Account page, you will be able to see, and download, itemized sales information for each album and song in each store and service. Your data is very secure: the only way to gain access to the information under your account is to have the email address and password associated with the account. IMPORTANT: There is no way to view only information on just one release/album. Anyone that logs into your account with the user name and password will be able to see all the information for all of your releases and titles. Please guard your password carefully.
What can I name an
album or a song, or even my band?
Although you can choose almost any album title for your album and almost any song name for your songs, there are important restrictions:
SPECIAL NOTE: MMD understands that some characters, such as "é", are vital to many words, but at the moment, not even simple accents can be accepted. We are working hard with iTunes and all our digital retail partners to lift this restriction. Until then, thank you for understanding.
What makes up a song?
We call a "song" (some people call them "tracks") any piece of music or sound that appears on an album, even if it's the only item on the album. No matter how short it is, it's still a song: every audio file you send us is considered a song, even if it's called "Part One" of a larger work. Songs are separate from one another, even if artistically they belong together as sections of a larger work. For important restrictions, click here
How long can a song
be?
A song can be as long as standard audio CD can hold: about 74 minutes. If your song is very long, it may not leave much room on the album for other songs. Don't forget the golden rule: an album can only have 74 minutes of music on it, no matter how many songs it's divided into. If you have one song longer than 74 minutes, you can break it up into multiple albums.
What makes up an album?
We call an "album" anything from one song to as many as you want. Even if it's an EP or a Single, we still call it an "album." If your album has dozens and dozens of songs, you can still upload them, but remember, an album can hold no more than 74 minute's worth of songs, no matter how many songs it's divided into. For example, you can have an album with ten songs, each song about 7 1/2 minutes long. You might have an album with only one song that's 74 minutes. You might have lots of songs and they add up to less than 74 minutes. The only rule is, an album can't be longer than 74 minutes.
If you have an album longer than 74 minutes, or if you have an album in many parts, click here.
What if I don't have
an album, I have an EP or a single?
All music is organized into albums, even if it's an EP or a single (only one song). If you have a single, you still have to create an album for it: an album with one song.
What about
audiobooks?
Although MMD can accept spoken word albums, we cannot deliver audiobook content to iTunes or the other stores. There is a private company separate from MMD or the stores called "Audible" that has the exclusive right to distribute audiobook content. If your album is an audiobook, you'll have to work with them. However, all other spoken word content is free to use MMD for digital distribution.
An album can't be longer than 74 minutes, no matter how few or many songs it's divided into. But some artists have double albums or albums with many parts. That's not a problem.
The cost for each album will be calculated separately.
Sure. But remember, an album can never exceed 74 minutes in total, no matter how many songs it's divided into. It stands, therefore, that the limit on a single song is 74 minutes.
Unfortunately, the stores/services are unable to accept classical music through their regular digital delivery system. An alternate system has been introduced. We are working with the stores to build this new delivery system. We hope to have this working soon. Thanks for understanding.
Albums at MMD have several states:
MMD will distribute any kind of music, although we reserve the right to refuse music that violates copyright law or contains offensive lyrics or graphics.
* Copyrights
We are happy to distribute releases containing non-original compositions [ie. "cover songs"], as long as you have acquired the proper digital and physical licenses required by law. Likewise, we can distribute a collection of songs recorded by different artists [ie. "a compilation"], as long as you're fully warranted to grant MMD the rights to distribute those compositions. Please contact client services at techsupport@mmdmusic.com for more details.
* Offensive Lyrics / Graphics
We're not in the business of censoring artistic expression, but we refuse to distribute pornography and music that promotes hatred against a particular race, religion, gender or sexual orientation. If you're not sure if your release falls into this category, please contact client services at techsupport@mmdmusic.com for more details.
* How do Explicit Lyrics work?
Albums with explicit lyrics are permitted on iTunes and other stores(except GroupieTunes), but the album must be marked explicit. This is voluntary, but if it is later discovered your album has explicit lyrics and you failed to indicate it, both MMD and the stores/services reserve the right to remove your album at any time, or your album may be rejected right from the beginning.
IMPORTANT: Although the MMD Web tool lets you mark individual songs explicit, right now if even ONE song on an album is marked explicit, the ENTIRE ALBUM will be marked explicit. There is no way to restrict it to a single or select few songs. It works just like the sticker affixed to the covers of CDs: it indicates the ALBUM has explicit content, not just any given song on the album. Please be aware of this when you make your choice.
No. We truncate some names so they fit on our pages, but your full name will always be delivered to the stores/services you chose.
My album needs an album cover! How do I create or deliver album cover art, and once I create/upload it, what if it doesn't look good?
We want you to have a unique album cover you can be proud of.
All MMD customers upload their own image by clicking the "Upload Image" link on the Your Album page.
IMPORTANT: Images cannot contain URLs or email addresses. Please remember that this is a small, "thumbnail" image that most likely already has text on it (the name of your band/artist and the album name, while not required, are strongly encouraged). It must be legible at small size and not blurry. The stores also require proper spelling and other professional touches, though "artistic" and intentional misspellings are acceptable. This is a gray area, please use your judgment, and remember that all the stores have the right to refuse or require different artwork.
Please make sure your artwork meets all these requirements:
* You fully own the rights to the image.
* You have the rights to use the face or image of anyone in your artwork, especially if it's a photograph.
* If someone else provided you the image, you have permission from them to use it.
* No logos, trademarks or any other text or images can appear unless you own them or have permission from the owner(s) to use them. For example, you can not have a logo from a soda company, restaurant, gas station, store, etc., in the background. If things like that show up in your artwork, MMD might ask you to prove you have ownership or permission.
* No obscenity or pornography can appear in the image.
* Words that appear in the image are spelled correctly and are legible
* The image is not blurry or distorted.
* The image is square.
* Remember: MMD and its partners reserve the right to reject any artwork at any time for any reason.
If your image meets all these requirements, then upload it as a 600 x 600 pixel (or better, so long as it's square) .JPEG, .GIF, or .PNG file in best-quality RGB Color mode and at least 72 dpi. For best results, don't scale up smaller images, and don't submit anything that contains an embedded color profile. The most common reason why uploaded art doesn't look good is that the file you uploaded was not to specifications. IMPORTANT: MMD can't accept artwork emailed, sent to us through the post, attached as files or any other way but our Web tool.
How long until my album(s) shows up in the stores/services I chose after I deliver everything needed to MMD?
Once MMD has received all of your required information, music, art and payment, we will deliver your music.
Once we deliver your music, it's up to them to get your music into their store/service. Each of the stores/services you chose will treat your music with the same careful attention they provide for all their record labels and artists. However, for reasons entirely out of MMD's control, the amount of time it will take for your music to appear may vary. Here is the general rule (not a guarantee), from the moment MMD receives the complete set of data (music, information, art, payment, files, etc.) for your album: albums successfully uploaded through the MMD Web tool should be up for sale on the stores you chose within six to eight weeks.
IMPORTANT: Once we deliver the music to the stores/services you chose, MMD has no control over when your music will appear for sale.
IMPORTANT: Some stores are slower than the other stores/services. We have no estimate on when music can be delivered to any particular store. Thank you for understanding and for being patient.
Here are some common things that can cause a delay:
* Missing information is the most common delay. Before we can deliver your album(s) to the stores/services you chose, we need to have all of the required information, such as song titles, album title, etc. If any of the required information is missing, the delivery process will stop until the information is complete.
* Music and Art files not meeting the requirements will be rejected quickly, but art files that are blurry or unreadable may be rejected by the stores even if they get past our checks.
* It is possible, for reasons out of MMD's control, that it could take some time before your music appears in your chose stores/services. There is no way we can rush them. Once we've delivered your music and information, we can only wait patiently. To date, all MMD partners have been very good with getting music into their stores/services quickly.
How do sales and payments work?
There are three ways your music can earn you money in the stores and services you choose:
PERMANENT DOWNLOADS
A Permanent Download means someone bought your music from a store and downloaded it to their computer, cell phone or some other media device. Each time your music is bought, you get paid. There are currently two ways that you get paid by Permanent download:
* You get a Fixed Pay Rate every time someone purchases your music for download, where you receive an unchanging, predetermined amount of money each time your music is bought. The Fixed Pay Rate remains the same no matter what the store sells it for. Even if the store sells your music for a hundred dollars or a penny, you still get the Fixed Pay Rate.
* You get a Subscription Pay Rate every time someone purchases your music for download, where you receive a variable amount of money each time your music is bought. The Subscription Pay Rate is different every pay period, and is typically based on four things:
1. How many songs were downloaded in a set period of time (monthly or every three months),
2. How much money was made by the store in the same time frame,
3. What "expenses" are deducted by the store, and
4. What percentage of the remainder is contractually owed to you.
The following stores all offer a Fixed Permanent Download model
* iTunes (all stores)
* Napster (also offers Streams, see below)
* Rhapsody (also offers Streams, see below)
* MusicNet (all stores; also offers Streams, see below)
* Puretracks
* Beatport
* 3 Beat Digital Network (all stores)
* Vonyc
SUBSCRIPTION PAY RATE PERMANENT DOWNLOAD
An example of a Subscription Pay Rate Permanent Download model
Unlike Fixed Pay Rate models, Subscription Pay Rates can be confusing. Here's an example using eMusic, which has a Subscription Pay Rate Permanent Download model:
Say, in the months of January, February, March there were 1,000,000 songs downloaded from eMusic in total (by all customers downloading all songs). In those same months, imagine eMusic took in $250,000 in digital download subscription revenue. That makes each individual download worth $0.25.
From this $0.25, eMusic will then deduct expenses (credit card processing fees, bandwidth, other expenses). For this example, let's say the expenses come to $0.05 per song. This is subtracted from the $0.25 per song, leaving $0.20.
From this remaining $0.20, 40% goes to the store and the remaining 60% goes to you (eMusic splits earnings 60/40, but other stores may have other deals). So in this example, you would make $0.12 per song bought: $0.12 is the Subscription Permanent Download Pay Rate for this store in this period. If you had forty downloads from eMusic in this period, you'd make 40 x $0.12 = $4.80 (U.S.), and as always, MMD takes nothing, 100% of that money goes to you.
Remember, the amount you make will vary from statement to statement and from store to store as the number of songs bought and the amount of money made in each period will not be the same, and some stores may have different deals.
The following stores offer a Subscription Permanent Download model:
STREAMS
There are typically two ways to listen to a music as a stream: "Tethered" and "Non-Tethered" streams:
* A Non-Tethered Stream means the media player (either a computer or, more often, a portable iPod or iPod-like device, like a Creative Zen Vision, Toshiba Gigabeat, and so on) only needs to be connected to the Internet once a month for the service to confirm that the user has paid their monthly subscription fee. After one month, if the person either stops paying their fee OR if the person does not connect their device to the Internet to verify that they have paid, the songs will stop playing on their computer or portable player.
The following stores/services offer Streaming Pay Rate:
* Napster
* Rhapsody
* MusicNet (all stores)
ADVERTISING
There are some new services that allow people to listen to your music for free. In return, the services sell advertising space on the Website where people must go and stay in order to listen to the music. The amount of money you receive each time your music is listened to is predicated on how much money the service made in advertising revenue.
At this time, MMD is not working with any stores or services that pay out money based on advertising revenue.
* When do I see how much I got paid, and when do I get my money?
Until the stores and services you chose send information, there is no way of knowing what has sold, where it has sold, how many copies it has sold or how much money you have made from the sale of your music.
All of the stores and services send out this information in one of two ways:
o Within 45 days after the end of each month, or
o Within 45 days after the end of every three months.
For example, eMusic sends out all information and money by 45 days after the end of every three months. Sales and information for the months of January, Febuary and March gets sent by eMusic by May 15th, which is 45 days after the end of March. Sales and information for the months of April, May and June gets sent by eMusic by August 15th, which is 45 days after the end of June, and so on.
IMPORTANT: Until the stores and services send the information and payment for the sales, there is no way of knowing what has sold, where it has sold, how many copies sold or anything else. Rest assured, as soon as the information is received, it will appear in your My Accounts page and your money will be available to take.
STORES/SERVICES THAT SEND INFORMATION AND MONEY by 45 days after the end of EACH MONTH:
STORES/SERVICES THAT SEND INFORMATION by 45 days after the end of EVERY THREE MONTHS:
1. iTunes
iTunes
How does iTunes sell my music?
There are currently seven iTunes stores:
o iTunes United States, selling music only in the U.S.
o iTunes Japan, selling music only in Japan
IMPORTANT: At MMD, some stores are bundled together to save you money and for ease of use. The following iTunes stores are bundled together so that when you purchase one, you get your music delivered to both for the same single-store price:
o iTunes U.K. and iTunes European Union are bundled as a single destination store for your album(s) for the same low one-store price, as iTunes U.K./Europe.
All iTunes stores sell music only as permanent digital downloads (no streaming is offered) that the customer owns and uses in the Fixed Pay Rate Permanent Digital Download model. Customers can purchase songs individually for a per-song price, or customers can buy albums whole, getting every song on that album for one set price. However, this isn't always the case. See below for EXCEPTIONS.
Most often, iTunes sells individual songs at $0.99 each. Most often, albums are sold for either the sum of all the songs on the album (for albums with ten or less songs), or for a single set price of $9.99 for albums over ten songs. See below for EXCEPTIONS.
For example, if your album has five songs, an iTunes U.S. customer can either buy the songs individually for $0.99 or the whole album for 5 x $0.99 = $4.95. If you had another album with 12 songs, an iTunes U.S. customer can either buy the songs individually for $0.99 or the whole album for $9.99.
EXCEPTIONS: iTunes (and all other digital retailers, for that matter) reserves the right to sell music any way they want and at any price they want. When your songs or albums sell, you will always receive the required amount, but iTunes can sell your music for a penny, a million dollars or anything in between. iTunes reserves the right to make a song "purchasable only with the album."
That is, no button would be placed next to the song itself, no option to download it on its own would be available to the iTunes customer. iTunes does this solely at their own discretion. Sometimes they do it to long songs (presumably because a 73-minute song would be too much of a bargain for just $0.99, since that's a whole album's worth of music on a single song). Sometimes they do it to very short songs (presumably because $0.99 is too much for a 10-second song).
Sometimes they simply adjust the price. However iTunes decides, MMD has no say in the matter, and neither do our patrons. Regardless, once a song or an album sells, you will be paid the required amount the moment iTunes sends the money. There is no withholding of any sort, not from iTunes, not from MMD.
Remember, only albums can be set to sell in stores/services, not individual songs. All songs are grouped into albums, and however the album is set to sell, so will all the songs on that album.
What do I get paid when my songs or albums sell from the iTunes store(s) I chose?
When an individual song or album sells from an iTunes store, you get a fixed "pay rate," the same pay rate for all independent record labels. (Click for more information about the Fixed Pay Rate Permanent Download model). Remember, only iTunes can set the sale price, but no matter what they sell that song or album for, you always get the current pay rate. Even if iTunes wants to have a discount, say, offering its customers your songs for a penny each, you still get the full pay rate every time one of your songs or albums sell.
In most stores/services, albums sell differently, so the pay rate is different:
You are paid the pay rate in the local currency of the country where the sale occurred. For example, if an album or song sells from the iTunes Japan store, iTunes Japan pays in Japanese yen (¥). The money is converted into U.S. dollars by the bank and forwarded on to you. As always, MMD takes none of the money from the sale of your music. You get it all, but be aware that bank conversion rates are out of our control and can change from day to day--the bank will convert the currency into U.S. dollars based on what the exchange rate is at the time the bank receives the money.
For songs sold individually through the iTunes stores, you receive 70% of the following:
iTunes Store You receive
iTunes U.S. Store US$0.70 (no exchange required)
iTunes Australia Store Australian Dollars AU$0.99 (EXCEPTION BELOW!)
iTunes New Zealand Store New Zealand Dollars NZ$1.17 (EXCEPTION BELOW!)
iTunes Canada Store Canadian Dollars CAD$0.78
iTunes Japan Store Japanese Yen ¥100 (EXCEPTION BELOW!)
iTunes U.K. Store British Pounds £0.49 (after May, 2007)
iTunes Europe Store Euros €0.68
Albums are sold in two possible ways:
o Albums under 11 songs are priced by the song. To calculate how much you would receive from the sale of an album with less than 11 songs, multiply the number of songs by the pay rate of that iTunes store.
o Albums with 11 songs or more sold in their entirety have a set pay rate listed below.
For albums with 11 or more songs sold in their entirety, you receive 70% of the following:
iTunes Store You receive
iTunes U.S. Store US$7.00 (no exchange required)
iTunes Australia Store Australian Dollars AU$9.99 (EXCEPTION BELOW!)
iTunes New Zealand Store New Zealand Dollars NZ$11.75 (EXCEPTION BELOW!)
iTunes Canada Store Canadian Dollars CAD$7.80
iTunes Japan Store Japanese Yen ¥1000 (EXCEPTION BELOW!)
iTunes UK Store British Pounds £4.90 (after May, 2007)
iTunes Europe Store Euros €6.70
IMPORTANT: All of the amounts for music sales outside of the United States are are subject to the terms, conditions, taxes and laws of those countries, including:
o International treaties
o Fluctuating exchange rates
o Local city, state or federal taxes
o Tariffs and local restrictions
o Current trade status any countries enjoy with the United States
o Some countries have special rules, so that even before taxes, tariffs, exchange rates or treaties kick in, some money is deducted by the store to pay fees and royalties dictated by local copyright laws. So from the amount you receive for sales of your music in that country, some amount will be deducted to pay the copyright holders under the local copyright laws. Even if the copyright holder is you, some laws require certain royalties to be paid out in that country. However, no matter what, you will get paid the pay rate, after taxes, exchange rate adjustments, etc.
Remember, because of currency exchange, these pay rates can vary from country to country and from day to day. For example, if you sell one of your songs through the iTunes U.K./Europe store, you ultimately may get a little more or less than the pay rate listed in the above tables, depending only on the foreign currency exchange rate the moment the bank received the money. How much more or less? That changes from day to day, but always, we promise that you get 70% of whatever your songs earn for you.
EXCEPTION: Japan has some special rules, so that even before taxes, tariffs, exchange rates or treaties kick in, some money is deducted by the iTunes Japan store to pay fees and royalties dictated by local Japanese copyright laws. So from the sales of your music in Japan, some portion will be deducted to pay the copyright holders under the copyright laws of Japan. Even if the copyright holder is you, Japanese laws require certain royalties to be paid out in Japan. However, no matter what, you will get paid the pay rate less this amount, after taxes, exchange rate, etc.
EXCEPTION: Both Australia's and New Zealand's governments withhold 5% as a tax on all sales. This amount is already deducted when you receive your accounting.
What is iTunes Latino, and how do I get into it?
iTunes Latino is a sub-store within iTunes U.S. specifically for content of interest to the Latino community. It consists of a home page and feature pages, lists, reviews, specials and other promotional material targeting the Latino demographic. Depending on the sales of your music, iTunes may direct the editors of iTunes Latino to place your music on best-seller lists and other promotionals.
All the rules, restrictions, pay rates and territories of the iTunes U.S. store apply: music in the iTunes Latino sub-store is sold as iTunes U.S. music, and is available only in the United States. All sales will be reported as regular iTunes U.S. sales. For all the information you need to know on iTunes U.S. sales and payments, please see the section on iTunes.
Your content does NOT have be in Spanish or Portuguese to be in the iTunes Latino sub-store, but it must be germane and appeal to the Latino community. iTunes reserves the right to determine what is or is not appropriate for the iTunes Latino store, and will remove any items it decides are misplaced there. IMPORTANT: MMD cannot decide if your content is appropriate for iTunes Latino, and iTunes does not provide specific guidelines. It is up to you to decide if your material belongs in the iTunes Latino store or not. If iTunes rejects or otherwise flags your material as misplaced in the iTunes Latino store, MMD will abide by iTunes's decision unilaterally.
To have your album included in the iTunes Latino sub-store, simply CHOOSE LATIN AS ONE OF THE TWO GENRES for your album when selecting genres from the Your Album page. IMPORTANT: All albums with the genre selection "Latin" will be eligible for the iTunes Latino store. All albums with "Latin" as one of its genres WILL BE PLACED in the iTunes Latino sub-store, unless iTunes's editorial staff determines otherwise. Again, only iTunes decides what should or should not be in iTunes Latino.
2. Rhapsody
How does Rhapsody sell my music?
Like Apple has iTunes, Real Networks has a digital music service called Rhapsody which lets customers buy permanent digital downloads as well as stream digital music directly from their site. For help with the Rhapsody service, we suggest you use Rhapsody Support.
Unlike iTunes, Rhapsody has several ways of allowing its customers to buy or listen to music:
o Rhapsody Permanent Download Store sells music only as permanent digital downloads that the customer owns and uses. Visit our section on Fixed Pay Rate Permanent Download models to learn more.
o Rhapsody Streaming Service lets Rhapsody Subscribers listen to music as much as they want as streams (not downloads) for a single flat subscription fee. However, when that subscription lapses, the music becomes inaccessible to the customer. Visit our section on Subscription Streaming models to learn more.
There are several kinds of Rhapsody customers each with their own options for buying your music, each of which generates money for you in a different way:
o Rhapsody Subscribers can listen to an unlimited number of full-length songs while they are connected to the Internet and download an unlimited number of high quality music files to their PC. They can listen to these downloaded songs online or offline and keep the music they download so long as their subscription is current. These songs and albums aren't "purchased" or "permanent" downloads, there's no way for a customer to burn or save the music, and as soon as the customer's subscription lapses, they lose access to streamed/tethered music.
o Rhapsody Subscribers can also buy permanent downloads (at a lower price than non-subscribers pay).
o Rhapsody Non-Subscribing Customers cannot stream songs on demand.
o Rhapsody Non-Subscribing Customers can also buy permanent downloads, but they pay more than subscribers.
o Rhapsody Trial Subscribers are trying out the Rhapsody subscription streaming service. Trial Subscriptions can last for up to 30 days.
o Rhapsody Trial Subscribers can also buy permanent downloads.
What do I get paid when my songs or albums sell or stream from Rhapsody?
Each time a Rhapsody Non-Subscribing Customer permanently downloads your songs or albums, you get a payment. When a Rhapsody Subscriber or Rhapsody Trial Subscriber permanently downloads, you also get a payment, but a fraction less. When a Rhapsody Subscriber streams or "tethered downloads" your songs or albums, you get a payment, but when a Rhapsody Trial Subscriber streams, you don't get a payment. And of course, Non-Subscribers can't stream whole songs at all.
For songs sold individually as Permanent Downloads through Rhapsody, you receive the following:
Type of Rhapsody customer You receive (all $U.S.)
Rhapsody Subscriber $0.65 per download
Rhapsody Subscriber $0.01 per stream
Rhapsody Non-Subscribing Customer $0.70 per download
Rhapsody Non-Subscribing Customer Cannot stream
Rhapsody Trial Subscriber $0.70 per download
Rhapsody Trial Subscriber $0.00 per stream
IMPORTANT: Anyone can sign up for a Rhapsody Trial and get unlimited free streams for 30 days. If a customer streams your music during this period, you will not get any payment for them--it's considered promotional. This is a Rhapsody policy. If you do not like the idea of people streaming your music for free, please do not choose Rhapsody as one of your digital distribution stores.
Albums are sold in two possible ways:
o Albums under 11 songs are priced by the song. To calculate how much you would receive from the sale of an album with less than 11 songs, multiply the number of songs by the pay rate for that kind of Rhapsody customer.
· Albums with 11 songs or more sold in their entirety have a set pay rate listed below.
For albums with 11 or more songs sold in their entirety as Permanent Downloads, you receive the following:
Type of Rhapsody customer You receive (all $U.S.)
Rhapsody Subscriber $6.50 per download
Rhapsody Non-Subscribing Customer $7.00 per download
Rhapsody Trial Subscriber $7.00 per download
3. Napster
How does Napster sell my music?
Napster lets customers listen to an unlimited number of full-length songs while they are connected to the Internet and download an unlimited number of high quality music files to their PC. They can listen to these downloaded songs online or offline and keep the music they download for as long as they want to be a "Member."
Napster subscribers can access music in two ways: as "Members" and "To Go Members." Although Napster sometimes differentiates between the Napster store and the Napster Light store, these contain the same music, and your albums will be in both. For a complete description of the Napster service, we suggest you read the Napster FAQ. NOTE: MMD is aware of the Napster Ringtones service, and we are currently working on how to make this available for our customers.
o Napster Permanent Download Store sells music only as permanent digital downloads that the customer owns and uses. Visit our section on Fixed Pay Rate Permanent Download models to learn more.
o Napster Streaming Service lets Napster Subscribers listen to music as much as they want as streams (not downloads) for a single flat subscription fee. However, when that subscription lapses, the music becomes inaccessible to the customer. Visit our section on Subscription Streaming models to learn more.
What do I get paid when songs or albums sell or stream from Napster?
Remember that no matter how an individual song or album sells from Napster, you get a fixed "pay rate," the same pay rate for all independent record labels. Only Napster can set the sale price, but no matter what they sell that song or album for, you always get the current pay rate. Even if Napster wants to have a discount, say, offering its customers your songs for a penny each, you still get the full pay rate every time one of your songs or albums sell. Visit our section on Subscription Streaming models to learn more.
Napster works in several ways:
o Napster Subscribers ("Members" and "To Go Members") have a variety of services available to them. For details, please click here
o Napster Subscribers ("Members" and "To Go Members") can also buy permanent downloads, by using the Napster Light store, if they wish.
o Napster Light Customers also have services available. For details, please click here
o Napster Trial Subscribers ("Trial Members") are trying out the Napster subscription streaming service, and can also buy permanent downloads through the Napster Light store, if they wish.
Each time a Napster Subscriber ("Member" or "To Go Member") streams more than 30 seconds of your song, you get paid. When anyone, even a Napster Subscriber ("Member" or "To Go Member") permanently downloads one of your songs or albums, you also get paid. Here is a chart that tells you what you will you get when a song streams or downloads from the countries Napster sells in:
For Permanent Downloads PER SONG through the Napster Light Store:
Napster Light Worldwide: You receive per song
Napster U.S. Store US$0.65
Napster Canada Store Canadian Dollars CAD$0.65
Napster U.K. Store British Pounds £0.48
Napster Europe Store Euros €0.65
Albums are sold in two possible ways:
o Albums under 11 songs are priced by the song. To calculate how much you would receive from the sale of an album with less than 11 songs, multiply the number of songs by the pay rate of that country. For example, from the sale in the U.S. Napster Light Store of a 5-song album, you would receive $3.25 for the whole album.
o Albums with 11 songs or more sold in their entirety have a set pay rate listed below.
For Permanent Downloads PER ALBUM (11 songs or more) through the Napster Light Store:
Napster Light Worldwide: You receive per album
Napster U.S. Store US$6.50
Napster Canada Store Canadian Dollars CAD$6.50
Napster U.K. Store British Pounds £4.80
Napster Europe Store Euros €6.50
For each of your songs or albums streamed by a Napster Subscriber ("Member" or "To Go Member"), you receive a proportionate share of the membership fees, based on the number of streams of your music in that pay period, minus any applicable expenses.
IMPORTANT: Napster pays on a monthly basis for Permanent Downloads sold, but pays on a three-monthly basis for streams!
IMPORTANT: Napster currently distributes in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union. Napster may add more countries at any time. For the moment, you MUST have worldwide rights to your music before you select to have it available in Napster. In the near future, MMD will offer you the ability to control what parts of the world you make your music available in.
4. MusicNet Network
MusicNet Network MusicNet
How does MusicNet sell my music?
MusicNet provides branded digital music stores for other companies. At the moment, MusicNet's comprehensive suite of digital music services include Yahoo!, Cdigix Ctrax (on more than 30 college campuses), iMesh, HMV Digital, Virgin Digital U.K., FYE Download Zone, MTV's Urge, Microsoft's Zune, MusicGremlin and, comming soon, Aeon Digital and more. MusicNet is the world's leading business-to-business digital music service provider.
When you select to have your albums delivered to MusicNet, your music WILL be placed in all the stores/services MusicNet currently provides and any future ones they may add. IMPORTANT: There is no way to pick and choose which stores you want to be in at MusicNet--it is an "all or nothing" choice. If you choose to have your music delivered to MusicNet, be aware they may drop or add stores/services, and your music will be removed from any dropped stores/services and/or into any new stores/services. IMPORTANT: Some current or some future stores that are part of MusicNet may distribute in countries outside the United States. You currently MUST have worldwide rights to your music before you select to have it available in the MusicNet group of stores. In the near future, MMD will offer you the ability to control what parts of the world you make your music available in.
MusicNet sells music in various ways:
o MusicNet Subscribers ("Members") can stream all the music they want for as long as they want as many times as they want for as long as they are subscribers. They can also buy permanent downloads, if they wish.
o MusicNet Customers can buy permanent downloads, if they wish, without subscribing to any membership. They cannot stream songs on demand, like subscribers can.
o MusicNet Trial Subscribers ("Trial Members") are trying out the MusicNet subscription streaming service, and will be able to stream as many songs as they want as many times as they want for 30 days at no charge; after the thirty days, they will have to pay to subscribe to keep on-demand streaming. NOTE: They can also buy permanent downloads, if they wish. YOU ARE NOT PAID FOR ANY SONGS STREAMED IN A TRIAL SUBSCRIPTION.
IMPORTANT: Anyone can sign up for MusicNet and get unlimited free streams for 30 days. If a customer streams your music during this period, you will not get any payment for them: it's considered promotional. This is a MusicNet policy. If you do not like the idea of people streaming your music for free, please do not choose MusicNet as one of your digital distribution stores.
What do I get paid when songs STREAM from MusicNet?
For STREAMS, MusicNet works on a Subscription Pay Rate Permanent Download model. MusicNet does not pay a pre-set amount for each stream. For each three month period, MusicNet calculates how many songs were streamed and how much money was paid to MusicNet for subscriptions in that period. This rate changes from period to period based on how many songs are streamed and how much money was paid to MusicNet for subscriptions.
To get the per-song Pay Rate, MusicNet divides the amount of money made by the number of songs streamed. This sets the Pay Rate for each song streamed. From this Pay Rate, MusicNet then deducts out Allowed Expenses (these are not negotiable and are the same Allowed Expenses deducted from all other labels and artists working with MusicNet). As always, MMD passes along 70% of all monies collected for your media to you.
For Example: Say, in the months of January, February, March there were a total of 1,000,000 songs streamed from MusicNet by all customers streaming all songs. Imagine in those same months MusicNet took in $250,000 in digital streaming pre-pay revenue. That makes each individual stream worth $0.25.
From this $0.25, MusicNet then deducts expenses (credit card processing fees, advertising, bandwidth, other expenses). For this example, let's say the expenses come to $0.05 per song. This is subtracted from the $0.25 per song, leaving $0.20.
From this remaining $0.20, 45% goes to you. So in this example, you would make $0.09 per song streamed: $0.09 is the Subscription Streaming Pay Rate for this store in this period. If you had forty streams from MusicNet in this period, you'd make 40 x $0.09 = $3.60 (U.S.), and as always, 70% of that money goes to you.
What do I get paid when songs ARE DOWNLOADED from MusicNet?
For DOWNLOADS from MusicNet, regardless of whether or not the customer is a "Member," you get a fixed "pay rate," the same pay rate for all independent record labels. (Click for more information about the Fixed Pay Rate Permanent Download model). Remember, only MusicNet can set the sale price, but no matter what they sell that song or album for, you always get the current pay rate. Even if they want to have a discount, say, offering its customers your songs for a penny each, you still get the full pay rate every time one of your songs or albums sell.
HOW MUCH IS THE PAY RATE?
You always get 70% of all revenue generated from the sales of your media. Music can be downloaded from MusicNet in several possible ways:
o Songs downloaded individually generate the song pay rate for that country (see below)
o Albums under 11 songs are priced by the song. To calculate how much you would receive from the sale of an album with less than 11 songs, multiply the number of songs on the album by the song pay rate for that country (see below)
o For albums with 11 or more sold in their entirety, you receive the album pay rate for that country (see below).
Song Pay Rates, By Country:
MusicNet Downloads Worldwide: You receive per song
MusicNet U.S. Store US$0.70
MusicNet Canada Store Canadian Dollars CAD$0.72
MusicNet U.K. Store British Pounds £0.47
MusicNet Europe Store Euros €0.68
Album Pay Rates for Albums Sold In Their Entirety, By Country:
MusicNet Whole-Album Downloads Worldwide: You receive
MusicNet U.S. Store US$7.00
MusicNet Canada Store Canadian Dollars CAD$7.20
MusicNet U.K. Store British Pounds £4.60
MusicNet Europe Store Euros €6.70
5. eMusic
How does eMusic sell my music?
eMusic is a service that lets people download music (no streaming is offered) on a pre-buy model. eMusic's customers sign up at one of three different pre-buy rates which sets how many songs they can download each month. eMusic currently offers:
o eMusic Free Trial Period: 25 free downloads
o eMusic Basic: 30 songs per month for $9.99, which comes to $0.33 a song
o eMusic Plus: 50 songs per month for $14.99, which comes to $0.30 a song
o eMusic Premium: 75 songs per month for $19.99, which comes to $0.27 a song
IMPORTANT: Anyone can sign up for eMusic and get 25 free downloads. If a customer downloads your music as one or more of these 25 free downloads, you will not get any payment for them--it's considered promotional. This is an eMusic policy. If you do not like the idea of people downloading your music for free, please do not choose eMusic as one of your digital distribution stores.
Once an eMusic customer signs up and passes the free trial period, they have one month to download any 30, 50 or 75 songs they want. At the end of the month, any songs not downloaded expire. For Example, if, by the last day of their month, an eMusic Basic customer downloaded only 23 of their 30 pre-bought songs, the eight "leftovers" expire and the customer has to buy another 30 (or more) songs in order to download more music.
For a complete description of the eMusic service, we suggest you read the eMusic FAQ.
IMPORTANT: eMusic now distributes in the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe, but may add more countries at any time. For the moment, you MUST have worldwide rights to your music before you select to have it available in eMusic. In the near future, MMD will offer you the ability to control what parts of the world you make your music available in.
What do I get paid when songs or albums sell from eMusic?
eMusic works on a Subscription Pay Rate Permanent Download model, so the Pay Rate varies depending on how much money eMusic made in pre-sales each pay period. eMusic calculates how many songs were downloaded and how much money was made in the same three month period. This rate changes from month to month based on how many songs are downloaded and if customers that pre-paid for their songs downloaded everything they pre-bought.
To get the per-song Pay Rate, eMusic divides the amount of money made by the number of songs downloaded. This sets the Pay Rate for each song downloaded. From this Pay Rate, eMusic then deducts out Allowed Expenses (these are not negotiable and are the same Allowed Expenses deducted from all other labels and artists working with eMusic). Of what remains, you get 60%, and MMD pays out 70% of those collected monies to you.
For Example: Say, in the months of January, February, March there were a total of 1,000,000 songs downloaded from eMusic by all customers downloading all songs. Imagine in those same months eMusic took in $250,000 in digital download pre-pay revenue. That makes each individual download worth $0.25.
From this $0.25, eMusic then deducts expenses (credit card processing fees, bandwidth, other expenses). For this example, let's say the expenses come to $0.05 per song. This is subtracted from the $0.25 per song, leaving $0.20.
From this remaining $0.20, 60% goes to you. So in this example, you would make $0.12 per song bought: $0.12 is the Subscription Permanent Download Pay Rate for this store in this period. If you had forty downloads from eMusic in this period, you'd make 40 x $0.12 = $4.80 (U.S.), and as always, 70% of that money goes to you.
6. Sony Connect
7. Puretracks
8. Beatport
9. 3 Beat Digital Network
10. Snocap
11. Vonyc
* What do I need to know about Accounting?
With your My Account page, you can see your sales information, take the money you earned and access all the information you need to calculate any royalties or payments to anyone else. Every MMD customer with an active account has a My Account page. Just LOG IN to your MMD account and you'll be able to visit your My Account page by clicking "My Account" at the top of any page on the site.
If you have no music in your discography or if you never sent music up to a digital retailer through MMD, your My Account page will be empty, showing only a block of text stating that your My Account page is you waiting for data and money from the stores you chose. Even if your music is already in the stores you chose (iTunes, etc.), you may have no data or money in your My Accounts page, as most stores report sales activity and send payment only within 45 days after the end of the month, and in some cases every three months, in which the sale took place (for more information, please click here).
Once you have information in your My Account page, you will be able to see which songs sold, which albums sold, which stores sold them, what month the sales occurred in, how much you made per song, how much you were paid by each store for your sales and much more. Click on links like "view by song" and "view by store" and so on, until you get to the page that shows you just what you want to see.
You can also download all of your sales information right to your computer as a CSV (comma separated value) file. A CSV file can easily be read by any spreadsheet or text viewer. With the CSV file, you can sort and arrange the information any way you'd like. To download your sales information, click the download button and select the sales period you would like.
Use your downloaded "exported" accounting to build reports tailored to your needs. You can calculate mechanical royalty payments, how much each band member is owed, a producer royalty and more. If you like, you can also use the MMD system to make the payments for you. Go to your My Account page and send a payment by PayPal or paper check right to whomever you want! The system will also keep a log of all of your payments for easy reference.
GUIDE TO READING DOWNLOADED ACCOUNTING STATEMENTS
The accounting information you download ("exported" accounting) has many columns. Here are the column headers and their meanings, left to right:
o MMD Reporting Month: the month that your information and sales were actually sent by the stores and services (this is not the same as the "reporting period," which has a START and END date, see next columns)
o Start Date: the date the sales began in the reporting period: this is the start of the "reporting period"
o End Date: the date the sales ended in the reporting period: this is the end of the "reporting period"
o MMD Album ID: a MMD internal ID number used to help keep track of your album sales
o UPC: Universal Product Code: a group of numbers that are exclusively associated with your album and are utilized to track album sales
o MMD Song ID: a second MMD internal ID number used to help keep track of your song sales
o ISRC: International Standard Recording Code: a group of letters and numbers assigned to each song to allow easy tracking of each song
o # Sold: the number of copies of your song or album that sold as a download in the reporting period
o PayRate for one sold: the amount in native (local) currency you were paid by the store or service for a single unit (song or album) that sold as a download in the reporting period
o # of Streams: the number of copies of your song that were streamed in the reporting period (a "stream" is when someone listens to your song but does not own it and has not downloaded it)
o PayRate for one stream: the amount in native (local) currency you were paid by the store or service for a single song that was streamed in the reporting period
o Total Earned: the total amount of money in native (local) currency you earned from the download sales and streams of your song or album in the reporting period
o Currency: the type of currency that was paid to you when your music sold or streamed (for example: Euros, U.S. Dollars, Australian Dollars, eMMD.)
o Artist: the name of the artist that sold or had a song streamed in the store or service in the reporting period
o Album Title: the title of the album that sold or contained the song that sold or streamed
o Label: the name of the label that released the album
o Name of store or service: the store or service that sold the album or sold/streamed the song
o Country Of Sale: the territory/country where your song or album was sold or streamed
o MMD Transaction ID: in the event of a support query to MMD, please reference this transaction ID number so we can quickly locate the issue
o Exchange Rate: the rate at which the bank converted money earned from the sale of your music from non-U.S. currency to U.S. dollars (if applicable)
* Why do I need to earn a $10 minimum release balance before I get paid?
We realize that minimum balances are annoying, but considering the thousands of releases in MMD catalog, it would be impractical for us to operate otherwise. We deeply appreciate your understanding and cooperation on this point.
THE SILVER LINING:
o The $10 minimum balance is a one-time requirement per release. After one of your releases has reached its minimum balance, you will be paid quarterly for any additional digital earnings on that release, no matter how small.
o If MMD distributes more than five of your releases, you will be paid when your aggregate account balance reaches $10 - not when an individual release balance reaches $10. After your account has reached its minimum balance, you will be paid quarterly for any additional digital earnings, no matter how small.
* How many copies of my music have sold through MMD so far?
You can view your complete accounting informaton, including what specific retailers have sold how many copies of specific releases, in the "Accounting" section of your personal account area.
* Can I see my personal payment history for all sales through MMD?
You can view your payment history in the "Accounting" section of your personal account area.
* How often does MMD pay artists and labels?
MMD pays all artists and labels quarterly by cashier's check in US dollars only or via paypal, both of which are at the users expense.
* What if my release balance never reaches $10?
MMD will withhold all payments until your release balance [or account balance, for those with over five releases] reaches $10. After it reaches $10, MMD will pay you quarterly for any additional earnings.
* How do I collect the money my music earned?
Go to your My Accounts Page. There you will see how much money you have made, how many songs you have sold, where they have sold and more. You will also see a field that lets you choose how much of the money you earned transferred out. Enter the desired amount. You can always leave your account with as little or as much money as you wish. You will also see a field that lets you transfer out your money in one of two ways:
o PayPal: You'll need a PayPal account. Start at the PayPal Website.
o Paper check: You'll need to tell us who to make the check payable to and the physical address where to mail and the phone number.
IMPORTANT: You'll have to enter your information as requested or we won't be able to transfer any funds.
Each of these transfer options also has an associated fee per transaction which will be detailed at the time you make your transfer request:
o Fee for paper checks: $1.33 U.S. per check mailed to you.
o Fee for PayPal transfer: FREE, but MMD has no say about any charges PayPal may charge.
Fees will be automatically deducted from the amount you requested withdrawn. For example, the cost to receive a paper check is $1.33. If you have $75.00 in your account and you requested all of it paid to you by check, the amount you will be sent is $73.67 (which is $75.00 minus the check fee of $1.33).
IMPORTANT: At this time, transfers can only be made to one person/entity. If you want to divide the money (to other band members, copyright owners, friends, etc.), it's up to you to transfer it out of your MMD account to yourself (or whoever you direct the transfer to go) and split it up however you see fit.
IMPORTANT: If the payment doesn't get through to you, MMD holds on to it. We'll try to reach you, but if we can't, we'll hold your earnings safely. After all, this is your money!
* How much of my sales revenue does MMD keep?
MMD pays all of our clients 70% of al revenue generated and collected by MMD for your media masters.
* Why is there so little (or no) money in my account?
If no money has shown up in your account, there's a reason. Here's a checklist of common reasons:
o None of your music sold in the previous month. Remember, you get from the stores/services you chose whatever your music earned for you only after the data and money arrives. For example, data and money generated from the sale of a song from an iTunes store arrives approximately 45 days after the end of the month in which that song sold. Check your My Account page to see what months your music actually sold in. When money does arrive in your account, MMD automatically notifies you by email.
o Your music never sold at all.
o You're in the wrong account. Some people create multiple accounts. If you have multiple accounts, please make sure you've checked them all.
* Why hasn't my money transferred?
If you requested a transfer through any of the available options but the transfer has not happened, there's a reason. Here's a checklist of common reasons:
o You never requested a transfer. Your funds only transfer when you request it. Until you follow the steps on the Transfer Options page, no transfers will be made. Your money stays safe and sound in your account until you request some or all of it.
o There is no way to transfer your money. Remember, you have to indicate how you'd like your funds transferred. For example, if you wish a paper check mailed to you, you must confirm that option and provide a valid mailing address, name of payee and a working, valid phone number. Go to the Transfer Options page and select accordingly. Be sure to verify the information is correct.
o You indicated how you want the money transferred, but there's an error in your information. Check to make sure your choices and information are correct on the Transfer Options page. Mistakes happen. Perhaps your PayPal account has changed or is no longer valid? Perhaps the mailing address is wrong? Be sure everything is up to date.
o You requested more money than is in your account. No transfers for sums larger than your account holds can be processed. Make sure there is no fee throwing off your calculations! Please try again.
o You requested a paper check to an address outside the United States. Paper checks cannot be auto-sent from our bank beyond the borders of the U.S. If you are in a country that is not serviced by PayPal and you need to arrange alternate transfer, please contact accounting@mmdmusic.com for assistance.
o You requested transfer to a country PayPal does not service. PayPal will only service people in certain countries. For an up-to-date list, please go to https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_display-approved-signup-countries-outside
o You selected how you want the money to transfer, the information is correct, but something happened. Sometimes the post office loses a letter. Sometimes PayPal makes a mistake. If you suspect something like that happened, please contact us.
o You never confirmed your email address. No transfers can be made to anyone who hasn't confirmed their email address. Look at the top of almost any page, once you've logged in, and if you see a message reading "UNCONFIRMED," you need to click the "CONFIRM EMAIL" button and follow the directions.
o You incurred a fee. There aren't many fees here at MMD, but there are a few. If you incur a fee, it will appear on your My Account page. Should you have an outstanding fee, MMD reserves the right to deduct it from your account, which could mean you have nothing leftover to transfer. Please be sure to pay all fees promptly to avoid this.
o We can't reach you. If you cannot be reached even at a confirmed email address, if all your other information turns up empty, we can't transfer money or even talk to you. It's up to you to contact us.
* What can I do with the money in my account?
Money in your account is completely safe. Only someone with the user name and password has access to it. You can, at your sole discretion, initiate a transfer of your money any time, day or night, by check or PayPal.
For more information, please contact support@mmdmusic.com
Can I give my music away for free in the stores/services I chose?
Unfortunately, neither iTunes nor any of the other stores/services permit you to set the price customers pay to download or stream your music from their sites. When a download or stream happens, you will always be paid the required pay rate, but it's solely up to the store/service to set the price their clients pay. And they won't let you give it away.
There is another solution. Consider offering your music as a Podcast. They're free, and MMD encourages them, especially for those who wish to distribute their music for free. Here is a site (unaffiliated with MMD) that offers a good collection of sites and information about Podcasting: http://www.masternewmedia.org/news/2005/05/20/where_to_submit_your_podcasts.htm
My songs or albums are being sold for unusual prices, or my songs are forced to sell only with the purchase of the whole album: how does this affect my earnings?
Only the individual stores or services can set the price or circumstances for selling a song or album. You will always get the agreed pay rate, but that doesn't limit how they can sell your music. They can make a song available only when the whole album is purchased. They can charge more or less than average for a song or album. They can even have sales or specials, if they choose.
IMPORTANT: These decisions are wholly up to the store or service. Neither MMD nor a label nor the band/artist has any say in how stores or services sell the music. The only sure thing is whenever a song or album sells or streams, you will receive the pay rate.
Do I get paid when someone downloads or streams a sample of my song?
No. A 30-second sample (also known as a "Clip") is automatically created and made available for songs listed on the stores/services you chose. Samples do not earn a payment. Samples can be made out of any consecutive 30-second part of the song, entirely at the discretion of the stores/services. Most stores choose the second 30 seconds of a song (second 30 to second 59 out of the first minute) for the sample, but this rule is not universal. Customers can listen to as many 30-second samples as many times as they want without paying for it. Samples are a great way to encourage people to buy, so it's a good thing.
If your album contains song(s) that are near or under 30 seconds long, no sample will be generated. IMPORTANT: The stores or services are solely responsible for creating samples or not. At this time, MMD has no say in how or if a sample is made.
I have cover songs on my album. How do publishing rights work, and how do I find the publisher to pay them?
Cover songs involve "publishing." Publishing issues can be complex. Here is a quick background on how it works in the United States. Laws vary from country to country. IMPORTANT: The information in this section is not intended as legal advice.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Just like your computer or your car is your property; a song is property. It's a particular kind of property: "intellectual property." Just as you have a right to determine who uses your property, the owner of a song also has rights. So, you must get the right to use the song from the owner.
The particular right you need is the right to make copies of the song: the "copyright." Only the owner of the song has the right to make copies or to grant the right to others to make copies. So you need to get permission to copy the song. You get that permission by getting a license, just as a driver's license gives you permission to drive. In some cases, song writers and owners of songs do not take care of their own songs. They turn to someone else to deal with giving permission and doing all of the administrative stuff. This person or company is called a music publisher.
MECHANICAL LICENSES
In either case, you must contact the publisher of the song in order to get the license. The license is called a "mechanical license." The mechanical license gives you permission to mechanically reproduce (copy) the song. Of course, in this case the song is being reproduced digitally, but it's the same principle: every time someone downloads the song, a copy is being made. And for every copy that is made, the owner or publisher must be paid.
Remember, the publisher is simply someone taking care of the song for the owner. The amount of payment is established by the United States government under copyright law. The amount being paid is called the "statutory rate." Statutory is a fancy word meaning required by law. The current statutory rate the song owner or publisher must be paid is 9.1 cents per copy. So every time the song sells, you owe the owner or publisher 9.1 cents. This rate, you will discover, will be written in the mechanical license.
COMPULSORY LICENCE
In addition, instead of getting a mechanical license from the publisher or song owner, you could make use of a provision in the copyright law called a "Compulsory License." However, there are so many requirements for both notifying the copyright owner and accounting to the copyright owner or publisher for sales of his song, it is not recommended that you try this method. The best and easiest way to get a mechanical license is from the owner or the publisher directly.
ADMINISTRATORS
Some people in the U.S. talk a lot about a company called the Harry Fox Agency. What is the Harry Fox Agency? The Harry Fox Agency is just a company that gets hired by the people that own the rights to the song. The Harry Fox Agency now gets to deal with the administration. Harry Fox gets the license signed and sent back to them (which means a ton of paper work) and then they run around trying to find anyone that has used their clients' song and collect the money owed to their clients. In return, the Harry Fox agency takes a percentage of the money owed to their clients. This is called an "Administration Deal" as the Harry Fox Agency administers the licenses and collects the money on behalf of its clients.
The Harry Fox Agency does represent tens of thousands of people, but not everyone. For example, MMD founder Jeff Price has run spinART Records for the past 15 years and released bands like The Pixies. The creator of the songs for the Pixies (one of the band members) did not hire the Harry Fox agency. Neither did the songwriter(s) for the Apples In Stereo, The Dears, Michael Penn, Kaito, Clem Snide or many others. So, if you want to "cover" a song, the Harry Fox Agency may or may not be the place to go to get the license and pay.
YOU HAVE TO FIND THE SONG OWNER
You need to discover who owns the song. Setting this up takes a little one time work, but after that, you're good to go.
How are you supposed to figure out who to pay? That's a very good quesiton. Places like BMI - BMI's site, or ASCAP - ASCAP's site, can you help you discover who wrote the song and who to contact to pay on their behalf.
MMD is also happy to report the Harry Fox Agency has recently launched a new site called "SONGFILE," for full download mechanical licensing for covers. It is a tool for artists and labels who need limited quantity physical and/or full download (also called DPD) licenses. It can be found at www.songfile.com. This service is unconnected to MMD, but may prove a valuable resource for our clients.
Harry Fox has also posted a new Digital Licensing FAQ which you may find useful.
Note: ASCAP and BMI are public performance societies, not publishing companies--but that is another ball of wax.
Will my MMD UPC work with SoundScan? What should I know about SoundScan?
Yes! Your MMD UPC can be registered with SoundScan. However, YOU must register the UPC with them directly (see below).
SoundScan is a service run by the Nielsen Corporation--the same ones who rate television shows. SoundScan is an important part of the record industry, because it tracks the sales, physical and digital and more, of albums and songs. SoundScan can track your music sales too, if you want.
MMD recommends SoundScan, but they are a separate company, and to use their service you'll need to go through their site and register your albums. To learn more about SoundScan, click http://www.soundscan.com and explore what they have to offer.
To register your album(s), click http://www.soundscan.com/register.html and download the form and submit it to SoundScan as per their directions.
Things You Should Know About SoundScan
* Registering your album with SoundScan is free, but in order to get any information regarding the sales or your songs or albums, you must register and pay Soundscan.
* The UPC we give you free of charge with your album WILL WORK on SoundScan.
* Your relationship with SoundScan is your own, MMD does not offer support for them or their service.
Sometimes people bring their own UPC numbers with them when they join MMD but wind up using the UPC code we provide for the digital album, and end up having one UPC for physical sales and a different UPC for digital sales. So the album will be tracked AS ONE ALBUM INSTEAD OF TWO, follow these steps:
Send an email to dbase@soundscan.com. In the email FOR EACH VERSION (this means you're sending basically the same information twice, each of the two different UPC numbers) write:
To Whom It May Concern,
My album has two barcodes, one for digital sales and one for physical sales. Please compound the sales under one UPC.
PHYSICAL CD
* Name of the artist/band
* Name of the album
* UPC (for the physical disc)
* Track listing, in order
* .JPEG of the album cover
DIGITAL ALBUM
* Name of the artist/band
* Name of the album
* UPC (for the digital album)
* Track listing, in order
* .JPEG of the album cover
Why is MMD listed as a label on Allmusic.com?
We automatically register all MMD releases with the All Music Guide, the most comprehensive online database of CD releases. The All Music Guide and most of our distribution partners use "MMD" as a default label name because we are their unique point of contact for all MMD-distributed releases. If you would like to update your label information on AMG and our partner sites, please contact client services at techsupport@mmdmusic.com for more details.
Does MMD have or take ownership of any of my master recordings, copyrights, merchandise rights, live performance income, public performance royalties or any other income streams or rights?
No. Furthermore, MMD gets no rights to make CDs, vinyl records, DVDs or anything else. All of these rights remain with you.
Will MMD promote my music to help me boost CD sales?
MMD offers marketing services to our clients to help them promote their releases. Please contact a sales representative to obtain a custom quote suiting your marketing needs.
What rights am I granting to MMD?
As you'll see on our terms and conditions (honestly, read it, it's important), you grant MMD only these rights:
* You grant MMD the NON-exclusive right to deliver and allow the stores/services you chose to sell your music. In order for your music or art to appear on other digital music services, MMD must first get your permission.
* You grant MMD the right to collect and transfer to you all the money owed to you from the sale of your music in the stores/services you choose.
* You grant MMD the right to use the name(s), photographs and likenesses, artwork images, biographical and other information provided by you in connection with your music.
* You agree to the Schedule of Fees for our services.
* You agree to MMD’s Royalty/Revenue Split Rate for all media sold using our services and as detailed in the distribution contract.
* You agree to our Privacy Policy.
REMEMBER: MMD does not own your songs, your masters, your copyrights, or the rights to any art work or band photo you submit. You maintain all ownership and control of all your rights. Also remember, MMD gets no rights to manufacture CDs, vinyl, or anything else. These are your rights, not ours.
Can people buy my music from MMD?
At this time, your music can be bought in the stores and services MMD delivered your music to. However, your music cannot be bought at MMD itself, nor does MMD sell or distribute physical copies of your music.
What are MMD's fees, why does MMD charge them, and how do I pay?
Here are all the fees you'll ever encounter at MMD:
One-Time Fees:
* $0.77 per song per album delivery charge.
* $0.77 per store/service per album delivery fee.
* If you'd like an album taken down from one or more stores/services (only albums, not individual songs, can be taken down) prior to six months from when it first became available in that store/service: $20.00 early termination fee per album per request.
* When you transfer funds from your MMD account, there may be a fee imposed by the bank or financial service or PayPal.
All one-time fees for stores listed above are based on the assumption that each transaction contains 12 tracks and will be placed in MMD’s top 14 stores and that the client will also pay a yearly storage fee of $9.99. All transactions will be equal to at least $29.99 regardless of the number of songs on the release. All transactions will be based on a minimum 14 store placement which shall be included in the $29.99 package. Additional stores can be added over and above 14 at an additional cost per store or network of stores. Stores within a network will automatically be bundled together and cannot be divided into the stores of your choice. Hence distribution into a network of stores will be charged at a rate equal to the cost per store multiplied by the number of stores within that network.
MMD charges a delivery fee for each song we deliver and for each store/service we deliver it to in order to offset the cost of delivering the music while checking the files, tying the music to the information and processing the files and data so they're ready to go on the shelves of the many different stores and services. We charge a $20.00 early termination fee to discourage people from frivolously uploading and requesting albums be taken down right after they went up. Taking an album off a store/service is a complex and time-consuming process for all involved. IMPORTANT: The only way to change anything about an album once you've paid for it is to take it down and resend it, as detailed here, and this will incur all applicable takedown and delivery fees!
Are there any annual renewal fees?
Yes - your first years storage and maintenance fee is included in the initial set-up fee per release for MMD distribution, this storage and maintenance fee is assessed yearly and thus will be due on the anniversary of your enrolment date throughout the length of the contract. Once your release is registered with MMD, you can add other releases for a discounted rate.
Annual Fee
* $9.98 per album maintenance and service fee (all song(s) must be associated with an album--even if it is just one song).
MMD charges an annual maintenance and service fee to store, deliver and potentially redeliver your music to stores and services you chose or may opt for in the future. Also, we store your music in case one of the stores/services has a problem and requires we resend music files or information.
NOTE: If you ask for an album to be taken down from all stores/services, we'll be sure to remove it completely from our storage.
What forms of Payment does MMD accept?
At the moment, MMD accepts PayPal and Credit Cards for all incoming payments.
PayPal will allow you to use:
* Instant Transfer
* e-check
* credit card
* other options
MMD excepts only Visa and Master Card at this time.
How long will my album(s) be available on the stores/services I selected, and how does automatic renewal work?
How long will my album(s) be available on the stores/services I selected, and how does automatic renewal work?
Your music will remain in the stores/services you chose for as long as you'd like.
* MMD’s standard distribution term is 2 years.
* If you'd like an album to be taken from any or all stores/services before the end of the contract term you'll be charged a one-time $20.00 early termination fee per album.
* Exactly 14 months (it's really a year, but for the first year we allow two "grace" months) after you deliver everything required for an album to MMD, you'll automatically be charged the annual renewal fee for that album (see below).
IMPORTANT: If we don't hear from you requesting otherwise, 14 months after we receive everything required for delivering an album, the annual maintenance and storage fee will be charged (see below). The annual maintenance and storage fee is NON-REFUNDABLE and WILL NOT BE PRORATED. Please go here for important details.
The maintenance and storage fee is $9.98 per album per year.
After you've received my music, how long does it take for your distribution partners to make it available for purchase?
Here's a step-by-step description of what happens after we receive your music:
1. We check all incoming "new release" packages the day they're received to make sure everything is in order.
2. Within two business days, we create and post your MMD artist and release pages.
3. We assign a "release date" to each new release. The release date is scheduled for the third Tuesday after we receive your package. Please note: your "release date" is not the exact date when your music will be available for purchase through our distribution partners. It is simply a rough estimate.
4. Every Thursday, we send our distribution partners a list of new releases received the prior week.
5. Every Friday, we ship those releases to our third-party encoding partner, who encodes your tracks to meet the different specifications of our DMS partners.
The rest is up to our distribution / encoding partners. In our general experience:
* Digital music services [DMSs] should take between 2-4 weeks to post your tracks, but due to the relative newness of these services and the encoding/delivery process involved, many DMSs are temporarily overwhelmed with ingesting high volumes of music. The current turnaround is closer to 4-6 weeks, although we expect it to shorten eventually.
Do you offer discounts for adding new releases to MMD?
No! Due to our already industry leading lower than average fee structure MMD cannot discount the registration of new releases unless you are submitting 5 or more releases at the same time.
Can I allow a record label to distribute my MMD-distributed CD?
MMD artist agreement is non-exclusive, so you will always have the freedom to sign a record label contract that provides distribution through outlets outside of MMD.
How do I notify MMD that I want my album(s) removed from one or all stores/services?
You can have your album(s) taken down from any or all of the stores/services you chose at any time. Be sure you check here for important details. Then just send an email to support@mmdmusic.com and include:
* Title of the album
* Name of the artist
* Name of the person who holds the MMD account
* Unique Album number assigned to the album (found on your My Discography page)
* The stores or services from which you want the whole album removed
IMPORTANT: You can have your album taken down from one store/service and keep them up in the others. For example, you can remove your album(s) from the Canadian iTunes store but still keep them in other store(s)/service(s). Please be specific in your instructions. Remember, if you ask for your album to be taken down from any store/service you selected within the first 6 months, you will be charged a one-time administrative fee of $20.00 per album per request. For details, click here.
IMPORTANT: We can take an album down, but we can't take down individual songs that are part of an album. If you want some songs to be in one store and not others, you have to break them up into separate albums, and each of these album will be treated like new (it'll cost you a whole new album delivery fee, maintenance and storage fee, and so on).
When we get your "takedown" request, the album will be marked "set for takedown" on your My Discography page.
We will make sure to get your takedown request to the stores/services you chose within seven days of receiving it from you. The store/service should have the album down within two weeks, but it can take longer. Feel free to visit your listings in the stores/services from time to time to check the status of your album(s).
IMPORTANT: If you don't tell us you want your music taken down, 14 months after we first received everything required for delivery of that album from you, the annual maintenance and storage fee for the next year will be charged. Thereafter, every 12 months the annual maintenance and storage fee will renew again. The annual maintenance and storage fee is NON-REFUNDABLE and WILL NOT BE PRORATED. Please see our Album Removal section for details, and please check here for more important details.
Can I leave at any time?
In order for MMD to distribute your music, you must sign an agreement that grants MMD perpetual non-exclusive distribution rights to your music. We made the agreement non-exclusive so there'd be no need to discontinue MMD distribution if you had an opportunity to take advantage of services outside of MMD's distribution reach.
But if you still want to discontinue your MMD agreement, you will need to submit a written termination request that states why you want to remove a particular release from MMD distribution. If MMD approves the termination request, we will notify all of our partners and any payment due will be rendered. An album removal fee of $9.99 will be charged to licensor for the removal of each album from the MMD distribution network.
How do I notify MMD that I'd like to close my account?
In order for MMD to distribute your music, you must sign an agreement that grants MMD perpetual non-exclusive distribution rights to your music. We made the agreement non-exclusive so there'd be no need to discontinue MMD distribution if you had an opportunity to take advantage of services outside of MMD's distribution reach.
But if you still want to discontinue your MMD agreement, you will need to submit a written termination request that states why you want to remove a particular release from MMD distribution. If MMD approves the termination request, we will notify all of our partners and any payment due will be rendered. An album removal fee of $9.99 will be charged to licensor for the removal of each album from the MMD distribution network.
After I pay for my album(s), what changes can I make?
Unfortunately, once an album is paid for, you can make ABSOLUTELY NO CHANGES to your album. However, once the album has finished being delivered to the stores you chose, a link will appear on your My Discography page next to the album giving you the chance to add more stores.
If you absolutely need to change something, you'll have to request that we remove the album completely. This request is free of charge, unless it's within the first six months, in which case a $20.00 early termination fee may apply (details here). Then you would have to re-submit the entire album to MMD, which will incur the add-album costs and yearly maintenance and storage fee. As you can see, correcting mistakes after payment can be very expensive.
IMPORTANT: You can add a store once an album has been delivered to the stores you initially chose. You can add stores--even future stores, when MMD offers them--for a cost of $0.77 per store per album.
Please, please make sure your information is right before you pay!
Why do I have to confirm my email address?
IMPORTANT: If you do not confirm your email address, you will not be able to transfer any money your music may have earned.
It's important we have a way to contact you. It's also vital for security that we have your email address, to make sure your account isn't being abused or hacked. Once you are logged in, please take the time to confirm your email by clicking the "CONFIRM EMAIL" button at the top of any page. If no such button is there, congratulations, you're confirmed!
How do I get help with the stores/service or their software?
Always go through MMD support (support@mmdmusic.com) for any problems with how your album appears, sounds, or if there is any problem with how it is categorized (genres, etc.). MMD is your liaison and your advocate with the stores, and they will only initiate addressing a problem if it originates from MMD. We will always be there to help!
Unfortunately, MMD offers neither support nor assistance with any of the stores or services or their software regarding purchases, payments, search and client-side support issues: in short, any problem you or your fans might have as normal customers of the stores. If you or your fans encounter a problem with any of these stores, services or softwares, please visit their support pages.
I or someone I know downloaded or streamed my song from a store/service I chose and it sounds terrible, what do I do?
MMD promised to deliver your music to the stores/services you chose at the same sound quality we received it. We have tests we run on every song uploaded or mailed to us. If your song appears on those stores or services, it means all these tests were passed, and the song was neither corrupted nor altered on our end. So what happened?
We probably received a bad sound recording or "rip" of your music in the first place. This is almost always the reason for bad sound quality. Not all software "rips" music the same way, or even well. Some computers are bad at ripping. IMPORTANT: It is up to you to provide us with clean, quality recordings and/or "rips" of your music--we can only deliver to the stores or services what we get from you!
It's vital you ensure your computer "ripped" a clean recording of your music before you sent it to us. And obviously, if the recording quality itself is low, nothing MMD or any store/service can do will improve it.
Someone else has my band name or album name! What should I do?
Names can be tricky. Different countries have different rules and laws about names, and those rules apply differently. Sometimes a person has registered their name with a government office. Sometimes a person has retained legal counsel and vigorously defends the use of their name and their identity. Many others "just got there first."
MMD is not part of these issues. If you discover someone on one or more of the stores/services you selected has your group, artist or album name, and that it's interfering with searches or otherwise causing you trouble, it's up to you to fix it.
Here are some important facts and common fixes you should know about:
* Change your own name. This is almost always the best way to go, and we can help. Write us at support@mmdmusic.com with how you'd like your name changed. We recommend a slight addition, alteration or clarification. You have our sympathies--it's never easy to change your name even slightly, but sometimes it's the only way.
* You cannot include in your name such reserved characters as a slash, an asterisk and others.
* Neither your band name, your album name nor your song titles can be URLs or email addresses.
* Changing the capitalization of your name WILL NOT keep others from getting multiple hits on a search for your music, but it may help them identify the difference between you and another band/artist. NOTE: not all stores/services preserve capitalization, so this is not a very viable solution.
* MMD and all the stores/services and tracking services keep track of your album by the UPC, which is unique to your album. Even if your band or album shares the same name as another's, sales and royalties will NOT be mixed up.
Sometimes someone else may appear later with the a band, artist or album identically named to one of yours. If so, it's up to them to go through the above process and do their best. You'll have to do the same, if you discover the new album is affecting your searches.
I entered liner notes and other information on the Your Album page. Why can't I find it on iTunes or the other stores/services I chose?
We ask you to enter optional information on the Your Album page when you create your album so we have it on file for the day when the stores/services agree to accept it. Unfortunately, at the moment neither iTunes nor any of the stores/services we offer have the ability to accept additional information about an album or artist or label except on an individual, case-by-case basis solely at their own discretion.
Can I have liner notes, bios, about the band, lyrics and other information on the pages of the stores/services I chose?
Unfortunately, at the moment neither iTunes nor any of the stores/services we offer have the ability to accept additional information about an album or artist or label--not even the information we ask you to enter optionally on the Add Album page when you created your album--except on an individual, case-by-case basis solely at their own discretion. This is also true of the look and feel of your artist and album pages, which is entirely under the control of the retailer, not MMD.
How do I update my artist and release information?
You can update your artist and release information by clicking on the "Edit Release" tab after you log in to your account. If you'd like to update your artist name, release name, track title, or anything else that's not changeable on "Edit Release," visit Client Services and we will alert all of our distribution partners.
How do I update my personal contact info?
We like to know where you are -- please keep us up to date! Update your personal contact info on your account home page when you log in to your account. If you'd like to update other account specifics, see How do I update my artist and release information?
Can I get my album or artist featured or otherwise specially promoted on the front pages of iTunes or the other stores/services I chose?
A store/service is the sole authority when it comes to deciding who gets featured, promoted, exposed or "surfaced" on their site. It's entirely up to them, MMD has no say in the matter.
In general, a store chooses to place an album front-and-center based its own internal criteria.
When will MMD offer other other stores/services?
We know how important it is for your music to be available all over the Internet. MMD is currently working out plans with most every other major online digital media retailer in operation and some that are only announced! We will have many other services available to you in the very near future.
Does MMD offer discounts to labels that want to distribute several different releases?
Yes! When you add five or more releases to MMD at the same time, for Unlimited Worldwide Digital Distribution costs $39.99 per release [$10 discount].
If you'd like to take advantage of these discounts, you must download and complete a special PDF form at the beginning of our online "add release" form.
I forget my password. Can you email it to me?
Sure - please email client services at techsupport@mmdmusic.com.
I forget my user name. Can you email it to me?
Sure - please email client services at techsupport@mmdmusic.com.