A song may be marked as ineligible for a number of reasons, including (but not limited to):
The Song is a Non-Original Composition
In order for a song to qualify for publishing administration, it needs to be an original work written wholly or in part by you. We do not accept compositions you did not create because the original copyright may be owned and/or controlled by the original songwriter(s) or a music publisher. We can only accept original compositions, which are compositions containing music and lyrics composed by you, the songwriter.
The Song Contains an Uncleared Sample
If a song contains a portion of another musical composition or recording which has not been approved by the applicable rights holder (i.e., an “uncleared sample”), that song is ineligible for publishing administration unless the sample has been approved by the rights holders in the original work.
The Song is in the Public Domain
A song which is a non-contributive arrangement of a public domain work will be marked as ineligible. However, a new arrangement of a public domain work may be eligible for copyright administration, provided that (i) the song is a new and unique arrangement of the original work; and (ii) the song is identified as an arrangement of an existing work during the sign-up process. For example, if you have made a contributive arrangement of Claude Debussy’s “Clair de Lune”, you would submit the song title as follows: “Clair de Lune - (Arrangement)”.
The Song Falls into One of the Following Categories:
Under U.S. copyright law, certain works are not eligible for copyright registration as a musical work and, as such, their rights holders are not entitled to royalties that are paid in connection with the exploitation of musical compositions. These works include:
- Works containing only sound effects and/or sound design.
- For example, works containing only nature sounds, Waterfalls, ocean waves, animal calls/sounds, white noise, traffic sounds, doorbells, etc.
- Ringtones created from existing musical compositions.
- Ringtones are acceptable only if they embody an original music composition created by you.
- Compositions containing only spoken words.
- Spoken word compositions are acceptable if they are accompanied by an original musical composition created by you. We cannot accept spoken word compositions that are composed of the spoken word speech.
- Compositions which contain or are wholly composed of royalty free music.
- You cannot obtain royalty free music and submit for administration as original work nor can you compose original music for royalty free purposes and submit it for administration.
- Binaural/Meditation Sounds:
- We will not accept any hypnosis therapy sessions or self-help compositions, unless they fall under the accepted spoken word categories. This may include massage, tantric or relaxation works.