In the rapidly evolving landscape of digital content creation, live streams and videos have become the lifeblood of online engagement. From gaming to vlogging and tutorial videos, creators strive to captivate their audience through captivating visuals and informative commentary, often complemented by background music. However, integrating background music has increasingly led to copyright issues for content creators. In this blog post, we will explore the challenges surrounding background music in live streams and video content. And then we will show you the easiest way to legally use background music in your content.
Understanding Copyright and Background Music:
There are a few different types of "background music". The most common is video content with music in the background, like you see every day on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, etc. Similarly, there is the background music you hear on Twitch and YouTube live streams, where streamers play non-stop music in the background as part of their stream. Lastly there is actual background music being played in the location you are recording your content, such as at a shopping mall, or a nightclub.
The same rules apply to all types of background music. To use any background music in your video or live stream, you MUST first get permission from the owner of the music or pay for a license. Otherwise, you will run into copyright issues, which can result in the video being muted or taken down, a copyright strike, or even your account being banned, so be careful!
Let's look at some examples:
Twitch, one of the most popular live streaming platforms, faced a surge of copyright-related controversies in 2020. The platform implemented stricter copyright enforcement measures, and record labels took advantage, resulting in thousands of streamers receiving Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notices for playing copyrighted music in their streams. Several prominent streamers, including Pokimane and xQc, received warnings, strikes, or had portions of their VODs (Video on Demand) deleted, or fully taken down. They lost a lot of their content, all because they played music without permission or a license.
YouTube, the leading video-sharing platform, employs a Content ID system to automatically identify copyrighted content within videos. Many content creators have faced monetization issues or had their videos blocked or muted due to unauthorized background music. Even when creators have the necessary licenses or permissions for music, false positives and misunderstandings can lead to frustrating encounters with the system. For example, take a look at what happened to PewDiePie. PewDiePie released his own song and told everyone it was safe to use. But PewDiePie didn't take the necessary steps to actually make the song safe for use, which resulted in everyone who used the song receiving a copyright strike.
Additionally, controversies have arisen when content creators use copyrighted music without proper permissions during sporting events or concerts, such as the Super Bowl, resulting in copyright claims and subsequent takedowns, due to the songs being played in the background. This can even happen if you create a video at the mall, if there is background music playing while filming. Such incidents can be disheartening, as creators invest time and effort into producing high-quality content, only to face unexpected copyright issues.
The Solution: StreemTunes
By now it should be very clear - you need permission or a license to use any music in your content. Now, unless you know a lot of artists who can give you permission to use their music, you will likely be stuck paying for a music license every time you want to use music. This can become extremely expensive. Fortunately for you, StreemTunes is here to save the day!
StreemTunes helps thousands of streamers and content creators steer clear of copyright issues every day by offering a FREE LICENSE to use its entire catalog of awesome music in any type of content. StreemTunes' extensive library of over 1100 fully licensed, copyright-cleared songs is specifically designed for live streams and video content. With StreemTunes, creators gain access to a wide range of genres, including LO-FI, Hip-Hop, Synthwave, EDM, Rock, Latin, Trap, Dubstep, Chill Out, Chiptune, Holiday, Content Creator and more. All you have to do to get started is search for StreemTunes on your favourite music platform and hit play.
So what are you waiting for? Check out StreemTunes now, so you can stop worrying about legal issues and focus on what matters most: your content.
Check out StreemTunes' royalty-free catalog here
Download any song to use in your content here