The Devil is in the Details
When you are browsing your music selections, sound effects, hosting platforms, and pretty much anything else that introduces a third party into your content creation - do you:
… make sure you understand which content remains yours - aka what you own?
… understand what is allowed to be used as long as you have the proper permissions?
“ … read all of those fine print agreements that everyone usually ignores …'“
The EULA: Let’s start with hosting platforms, whether that be website builders or podcast distributers. Whenever you are deciding to host your audio files somewhere, make sure you always own the copyrights and basically everything about your content! You worked hard to create your content, so you should make sure you still own it after it is distributed out into the world. That means taking the time to read the EULA - also known as the end-user license agreement. It can be called slightly different things, but it essentially refers to the rules of using someone else’s product to help create and/or distribute your creations - at least in the context of this example. Sometimes this info is buried in the ‘Terms of Service’ or ‘Terms and Conditions’ sections of websites, and you really have to dig for it. Other websites are really good about being upfront with their policies, and I tend to favor those first.
Music and Sound Effects: Similar to the previous paragraph, always check out the terms and conditions around how a website says you may use audio that’s downloaded from their site. Regardless of whether you end up having to pay for your music, it’s common for services like these to request that you mention where you obtained the music, in addition to mentioning the original artist. So for example, you may place your attribution in the show notes of your podcast. Someone took a lot of time to create that awesome music or sound effect you just found, so be sure to give credit where credit is due. Also - just because you gave the original creator credit, that doesn’t mean you are automatically allowed to use anything they made. You still need to have obtained proper permissions and copyrights, and that process looks a smidge different depending on the service you use. Beware of some services that offer music for no fees … sometimes the music posted on those websites isn’t supposed to be there, and you may be downloading something that was posted illegally. Often the terms and conditions of those sites explain that risk - so if it smells fishy - leave it alone and look for something else. Quite often you get what you pay for, and it’s frequently worth paying a little extra money, in the form of a one-time fee, to help ensure that you own the copyrights to something.
Quick disclaimer: I’m not a lawyer … and this post is not legal advice. These are observations based on my own experience. So at the end of the day, make sure you take the time to read all of those fine print agreements that everyone usually ignores - because now - that’s the stuff that directly impacts your creative adventures!
