Imagine spending hours or even days, working to put out your best episode yet \u2026 only to have it taken down due to its inclusion of a piece of music you didn\u2019t get permission to use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nobody should have to go through this!<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n To help you avoid the heartache of an episode or podcast takedown .. or worse, we\u2019ve provided some information below about the different types of copyrights, infringement claims, myths of loopholes, and even some ways to score free music for your show!<\/p>\n\n\n\n First of all, breathe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s highly unlikely any major legal action or fines will be coming your way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The worst case scenario is likely the content getting taken down, or you might have to reupload the content without the copyrighted material. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But how did they even know you were using copyrighted materials?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Many podcast and digital media platforms have AI that can detect copyrighted content in media posted within their own platforms. AI will scan music and podcasts, and detect even seconds of copyrighted audio in the posted content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This could be music sampled by a DJ without permission, or that clip of a Beyonce\u0301 song you used on your podcast episode about modern day queens. These tracking tools are especially important for platforms like Spotify and YouTube that also have relationships with music artists and labels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n No company is going to risk an important existing relationship with a record label by allowing other users to post their unlicensed copyrighted material. Your podcast could also be flagged due to a listener reporting you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Each platform has its own rules and guidelines. <\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n YouTube, for example, will usually respond by not allowing you to monetize the flagged content, and instead will monetize the content in question for the copyright holder. The copyright holder may also choose to simply have your content taken down. Or they may have the offending audio removed from your content leaving an awkwardly silent section of video.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Spotify however, is much more aggressive.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Spotify often chooses to remove your flagged episode or entire show from their platform. RSS.com and other hosting platforms<\/a> have no control over how other companies choose to enforce their policies on your syndicated content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As a rule, podcast hosting platforms follow DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act)<\/a> guidelines and will take down any content that has been reported by the copyright holder. If your entire podcast is flagged and\/or removed on other platforms for a DMCA violation, Your podcast hosting site may deem it necessary to suspend your podcast. You may be allowed to reupload the content in question with the copyrighted content removed, or if you believe the claim to be an error, you can contest the infringement claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A copyright according to Copyright.gov<\/a>, is \u201ca type of intellectual property that protects original works of authorship as soon as an author fixes the work in a tangible form of expression.<\/strong>“<\/p>\n\n\n\n In short, a copyright is legal ownership that is automatically attached to any creative work that you have captured permanently. It can be a recorded piece of music, or a painting, or a podcast episode. It doesn\u2019t matter how long you\u2019ve possessed a copy of someone else\u2019s copyrighted music, or in what form you own it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That old record of the spooky sounds of Halloween? Someone owns that copyright. A digital download of that unsigned band you saw last week in a coffee shop? They have the copyright for their music. The little melody that plays when you open up a musical anniversary card? Copyrighted. You don\u2019t have the right to use that music, even if you include it within other content or change the medium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Putting a song on your podcast is a form of reproducing that song. Someone has the sole right to reproduce that piece of music, and can give you permission to reproduce it, but you can\u2019t include that music in any publicly available content without getting permission. I know it can be frustrating, but copyrights are there to protect the creative people that have willed this art and media into existence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Music traditionally has two different kinds of copyright<\/a>s: A copyright on the song (mechanical rights), and a copyright on a specific performance of the song (performance rights). <\/p>\n\n\n\n These copyrights can be held by different entities. A record label might have the copyright of the album version of the song (performance right), but if the performer has the copyright to the song itself (mechanical rights), they could record or perform another version of the song anytime they please.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The short answer is: Not without express permission of the copyright holder(s). This is also true for audio from video clips. There are a lot of myths about copyrighted music for podcasts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you want to play a song (or part of a song) on your podcast, first you would need to find out who holds the mechanical rights and performance rights for the version of the song you\u2019d like to play. Then you would need to agree to terms. They might ask for \u201cper episode\u201d royalties, or more likely \u201cper use\u201d royalties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Music traditionally has two different copyrights: A copyright on the song (mechanical rights), and a copyright on a specific performance of the song (performance rights). These copyrights can be held by different entities. A record label might have the copyright of the album version of the song (performance right), but if the performer has the copyright to the song itself (mechanical rights), they could record or perform another version of the song anytime they please.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Royalties are the payments made to the copyright holder(s) for the use, performance, and\/or alteration of their copyrighted works. These royalties can be paid each time a copyrighted song is used in an episode of your podcast (per episode), or a flat payment for a specific way you use the song like your introduction (per use).<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFair Use\u201d permits a party to use copyrighted works for a variety of purposes, including criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research depending on the outcome of a four-factor test set forth in the<\/p>\n\n\n\n Copyright Act:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Proving \u201cFair Use\u201d in court can be tricky and expensive, so review the Fair Use Index<\/a> and check with legal counsel to be sure your content qualifies as \u201cfair use\u201d before including it in your podcast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIncidental Inclusion\u201d means copyrighted material that is unintentionally included in your content. Usually meaning it\u2019s background noise. This covers incidents like a car driving by blasting a song when you\u2019re recording, or maybe music playing in the background at an event or festival. This won\u2019t cover music being played at a low volume in your studio. It\u2019s got to be clearly unintentional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An easier method for securing permission to use music in your podcast is to find an independent artist or band\/group that self-releases their music. They would likely have complete ownership of both copyrights and could make an agreement that grants you full permission to use their song. Just make sure you get it in writing!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nope! This actually came up in a recent conversation our web content producer Ashley had with some fellow podcasters. They were under the belief that if you have a private podcast, you’re technically not infringing on copyright if you include copyrighted music in your paywalled show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We spoke to our good buddy Gordon Firemark aka The Podcast Lawyer<\/a> to get the facts on this matter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Here’s what we asked him: Can using copyrighted music in a private (or paywalled) podcast<\/a> cause legal ramifications too even though it’s not “public?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Check out Gordon’s response:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The short answer to your question is YES\u2026 Even behind a secret, private, paywall, infringement is still infringement. The analysis is really unchanged.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Copyright protects 5 different rights that belong exclusively to the author\/owner of a work. They are:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Note that the reference to \u201cpublicly\u201d above doesn\u2019t just mean that the performance or display is available to the general public, but I think is properly interpreted as meaning it\u2019s available to (any) member(s) of the public (whether they pay for access or not). After all, a film shown in the theater is a public performance, even though members of the public have to buy tickets to see it.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Just as importantly, though, using a copyright protected work, such as a piece of music, in a podcast episode or any other kind of production also involves copying (into the new work), distribution (of the new work containing the original piece) and making derivative works (the new work itself is at least partially derivative of the original)<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, bottom line\u2026 A \u201cprivate\u201d podcast is still something that requires a license. The main difference is the reduced likelihood that the creators get caught.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, putting a podcast behind a paywall makes it a \u201cproduct\u201d in a slightly different way, so in a fair use analysis, it could be argued that the infringing use is \u2018commercial\u2019 which tips the first factor (Purpose and Character of the Use) away from fair use.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you don\u2019t have access to music from local artists or friends, podcasters should err on the side of caution and use music for commercial use or in the public domain covered by most copyright policies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n We’ve put together a comprehensive resource on the best places to get free music for use in your podcast<\/a> without any legal problems. Make sure you look at the type of license each song has. Even if the license is free, it may require you to attribute the song to the artist in your show notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you choose to challenge an infringement claim, look through the platform enforcing the claim. Most will have a way to challenge any infringement claims built right into their platform or support pages. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If your claim is valid, they may choose to reinstate your podcast or podcast episode. If the claim challenge is unverifiable or lost, follow the instructions each platform provides for next steps:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most platforms will contact you and\/or your hosting platform with information regarding the copyright infringement claim, and contact information to resolve or dispute the claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re still confused about the use of copyrighted content online, you can find more information on copyright.gov<\/a> or check with your podcast hosting provider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also remember that copyright policies change from country to country, so look at your country\u2019s specific laws regarding copyright.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Podcasting is more than talking, It\u2019s a performance: An audio tapestry weaving stories and conversations for its listeners. Accenting those conversations is often music and sound design. Sound engineers will sprinkle in dissonant tones to convey suspense, or play a catchy clip to transition into another segment. A podcast\u2019s sound design can be simple and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":16264,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"single-with-sidebar","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[162],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16260","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tips-for-podcasters"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"spotify](\"https:\/\/rss.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Screenshot-2025-11-03-10.16.42-AM.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/span>I received a DMCA notice\/infringement claim. Now what?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/rss.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Screenshot-2025-11-11-8.42.19-AM.png\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"Spotify](\"https:\/\/rss.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Spotify-infringement.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/span>What is copyrighted music?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>What kind of copyrights are there for music?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>Am I able to use copyrighted music inside my podcast?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/span>How to get permission to use copyrighted music for your podcast<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>The difference between mechanical rights and performance rights<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>Paying Royalties<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>Fair Use and Incidental Inclusion<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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<\/span>Support local artists! Support your friends!<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"copyright](\"https:\/\/rss.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/infringement-alert-1024x576.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/span>Can I use Copyrighted music on a private podcast?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/rss.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Copyright-for-Podcasters-1024x683.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n
<\/span>Online Resources for \u201cfree\u201d music<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>Challenging an infringement claim<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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<\/span>Additional Resources About Music Copyright<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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