What is a sync licence?

A sync licence (short for synchronisation licence) is permission from the owner of a song's composition to pair that music with moving pictures: a film, TV episode, advert, game or online video.

Who grants it

According to Wikipedia's entry on synchronization rights, a sync licence is "a music license granted by the holder of the copyright of a particular composition" that lets the licensee put the music to visual media. For most professional writers that holder is the publisher; for an unpublished indie writer, it is usually you.

Sync versus master use

A finished recording carries two separate copyrights. The composition (melody and lyrics) is usually administered by the publisher, and the master (the specific sound recording) is usually controlled by the label. A producer who wants that recording in a scene has to clear both, so the sync licence travels with a master use licence. If you wrote, recorded and own both, you can sign both yourself, which is exactly why music supervisors like one-stop indie catalogues.

How fees are set

The rights holder typically quotes a one-time fee. Wikipedia lists what drives the number: how the music is used, the length of the segment, how prominent it is in the production and how popular the song is. Background music under dialogue costs less than a title sequence.

What happens after signing

The licence fee is only the first payment. When the production airs, performance royalties flow through your PRO, and that depends on the cue sheet, which Songtrust says is usually the producer's job to prepare and send. For the wider picture, see sync licensing basics for indies.

What we think

Indie writers tend to fixate on the upfront fee and sign whatever terms come with it. The terms matter as much: territory, term, media and exclusivity decide whether one placement blocks your next three. Before you sign, check that you actually control both the composition and the master (a co-writer or an old distributor deal can quietly own part of either), keep your splits written down, and make sure your PRO registration matches the names that will land on the cue sheet.