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Are Apple loops totally royalty free?


jeffloven
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I just posted a new song on CD Baby which distributes your music to iTunes and all over the other platforms. I noticed there was a field to include you new song to youtube and other revenue streams and it said you could not include this if your song/project includes royalty free samples and loops. I thought Apple loops were clear to use/market in my songs as I wish..?..

Any insight?

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I encountered this issue being discussed in a licensing forum. YouTube seems to reject anything with commercial loops whether or not the loop publisher (Apple, NI, etc.) allows the usage. There are web page documents on the YouTube help sites explaining (sort of) their monetization policy. Sorry I can’t include any links, to me the language was pretty vague so I lost track of their documents. The YouTube algorithm apparently flags the loop usage violations. The rejection is reported by LANDR but triggered by YouTube. Haven’t followed up on this recently, I try to avoid using any vendor-supplied loops.
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Based on my recovered notes from April 2018 on this issue David is correct. It was part of a discussion of recent monetization rule changes for YouTube and Facebook. A forum member’s submissions were rejected with the following comment in the rejection notice:

 

‪"It sounds as though [your track] used quite a few sampled or virtual instruments. Unfortunately this falls under Youtube's "Not Sufficiently Distinct" category.“

 

To me this language sounded like both an algorithm flag and a arbitrary judgement call. Debating this with YouTube seemed to be a waste of time regardless of the legal issue of the ability of the sample/loop provider to allow usage of their sounds. Rejection can result from how the music “sounded” whether or not it actually was sampled content, resulting in the dreaded “Not Sufficiently Distinct” condemnation.

 

This issue was part of a lengthy Facebook private forum discussion that wasn’t addressed by the licensing course sponsoring the forum, so at the time I decided to ignore it and go on with my life. This does NOT mean that I dismissed it as an issue. I will not be offended, however, if this forum’s moderators decide to ignore this issue also. Aside from the fact that Logic includes sample and loop libraries, it may not be helpful to pursue it here. I apologize in advance...

 

The following is from the YouTube Guidelines:

 


‪"The following examples are Ineligible and cannot be used for YouTube or Facebook Monetization:‬

 

- ‪Content licensed non-exclusively from a third party (such as samples that are not exclusively licensed)‬

- ‪Content released under Creative Commons or similar free/open licenses‬

- ‪Public domain footage, speeches, recordings, or compositions‬

- ‪Clips from other sources used under fair use principles‬

- ‪Video gameplay footage (by other than the game’s publisher)‬

- ‪Karaoke versions or sound-a-like cover versions‬

- ‪Part of a compilation/various artists’ albums‬

- ‪Songs already monetized on YouTube by another distributor‬

- ‪Contain any audio library samples, sound effects, or production loops (such as GarageBand loops)"‬ 


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so, you're song can be uploaded, it just can't be monetized on youtube: "The following examples are Ineligible and cannot be used for YouTube or Facebook Monetization:‬"

 

i've used a few loops (an apple drum loop, for example), but never without other elements that blend in with that (ie a beat built around the loop). have never gotten a warning. if your use is 'apparent', i guess you risk a warning; if you mix a sample with other elements, should not be a problem.

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