The right track, properly cleared

It depends on the route. Library and production music starts at a few hundred dirhams a track for standard uses. Licensing a known song is the other end of the ladder: budgets for recognisable tracks commonly run to six figures in US dollars for a single year of use, and global multi-year licences for famous songs reach seven. Every licence is scoped to media, territory and term, so we quote the whole life of the campaign, renewals included, before you commit. Our guide to music licensing vs original music breaks the ladder down.

Library music can usually be cleared the same day. A known song depends on the label, the publisher and how many territories and media you need: allow a few weeks for a straightforward request and longer for a famous track or a global campaign. Start the conversation before the edit is locked, because a track that cannot be cleared in time is the most expensive one of all.

Every recording carries two copyrights. The master is the recording itself, usually owned by a label or the artist. The publishing is the underlying song, the melody and lyrics, owned by the writers and their publisher. A sync licence for a commercial needs both, and they are negotiated separately, which is why a cover version (a new master of the same song) can be far cheaper than the original recording.

Yes, if it clears. Both the master and the publishing need approval, the price reflects the song’s fame and the size of the campaign, and some artists and estates decline commercial use altogether. We check availability and price before you build the edit around it, and we always carry a plan B: a cover, a library alternative or an original piece.

Library music is pre-written and pre-cleared for licensing to many buyers: fast, affordable and technically clean, and the same track can appear in another brand’s work. It is the right call for internal films, content series and tight deadlines. Our own production library can be searched before, during or after a session, and we license it alongside catalogues from many of the world’s best suppliers.

Often, yes. When the song is right but the original recording is out of reach, we license the composition from the publisher, arrange and record a new version to your picture, and you own the new master. Some writers restrict changes to lyrics or arrangement, so we confirm the terms before a note is recorded.

Only if it says so. The music built into social platforms is licensed for personal accounts, not for brand advertising, so a commercial use needs a licence that names social media as a medium. We clear social alongside TV, cinema and online as part of the media list. Our guide to using music in business advertisements on Instagram covers the detail.

License when the song is the idea, when a launch needs instant cultural gravity, or when a campaign runs once in one market and will not be reused. Commission when the music has to fit the picture exactly, run for years across markets, or grow into a sonic identity the brand owns outright. Most of our clients do both: own the core, rent the moments. See original music composition and our licensing vs original guide.