By registering your music with Content ID & More across platforms, you safeguard your intellectual property and tap into unexpected income streams. It's not just smart; it's essential in today's digital landscape.
Digital platforms are your virtual real estate. Just as you protect your physical property, securing your tracks' identity across YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Meta is crucial. Imagine a trending sound on TikTok used in countless videos—there's a producer entitled to revenue from that usage.
What is Content ID & More?
In 2007, YouTube introduced a service called Content ID to help copyright owners easily identify and manage their intellectual property on the platform. This system works by scanning the copyright owner’s content against a database of files submitted by other rights holders. Over time, more social platforms that use music as a part of the user experience – like Meta and TikTok – added their versions of Content ID as well.
Content ID allows copyright owners to determine what action to take when their sound used within a video on a social platform matches their work. If a match is detected, a Content ID claim is generated. The system assigns a digital fingerprint (more on that below) to each piece of content, enabling copyright owners to efficiently identify, manage, and monetize their works.
Building on the success of these Content ID models, BeatStars has streamlined multiple monetization programs into one solution called Content ID & More to track your music across platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook.
Why Every Track Has a Digital Fingerprint
When you upload a track to BeatStars' Content ID & More system, it is assigned a unique digital fingerprint. This digital fingerprint monitors your track's use across TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. It will also appear within the platforms’ sound libraries, making it available for users to discover and use.
- YouTube Content ID: With Content ID, YouTube is able to run ads on videos that use your content. The revenue generated from these ads is then shared with you. The amount you get paid depends on factors like the number of views, ad engagement, and the type of ads displayed.
- TikTok Fingerprinting: TikTok Fingerprinting enables you to protect your copyrighted content on its platform by allowing you to monetize whenever a TikTok video is created using your content. You will receive a portion of TikTok's ad revenue, calculated based on the proportion of videos created that utilize your content.
- Meta Fingerprinting: Meta Fingerprinting allows you to identify and monetize any uses of your copyrighted content uploaded to Facebook and Instagram through ads. With Meta Fingerprinting, you will receive a portion of Meta's ad revenue, calculated based on the proportion of streams that utilize your content.
Registration Criteria
If you are a Pro member, you can easily submit your tracks for Content ID & More from your Studio dashboard under the Features tab on the left-hand side, without any additional cost.
Here’s what you need to know about registering your tracks for Content ID & More:
- Your track must have been exclusively uploaded to BeatStars first. In other words, it cannot have been previously released through DSPs or have been uploaded to YouTube before it was uploaded to the BeatStars platform.
- You must have exclusive rights to the sound recording—no loop samples allowed.
- Submit an untagged file.
- The track should be less than 10 minutes long.
- Only instrumentals or beats with a hook are eligible—no full songs.
PRO TIP: Avoid submitting ambient sounds, white noise, ASMR effects, or music designed for sleep, as these sounds are often indistinct and can lead to conflicts with other creators. Similarly, tracks created specifically for video games may cause issues with Content ID and should not be submitted.
Why The Earliest Registration Always Wins
Content ID operates on a "first registration" system. This means that whoever registers a unique sound first is recognized as the master owner. Essentially, the first person to register holds the keys to the content. If someone else later tries to claim that same sound, it creates a conflict within the Content ID & More system, temporarily halting the video from monetizing until the issue is resolved between the copyright holders—whether that’s the label, artist, or producer.
PRO TIP: Register your tracks through our Content ID & More platform as soon as they’re created—before they’re downloaded, purchased, or discovered by buyers. This helps you maintain control over your intellectual property (your tracks) and prevents others from claiming ownership first. Think of it like holding the keys to your own house: if you wait, someone else could try to claim ownership, leading to legal disputes later on.
The Power of UGC
Now that we’ve covered the technical details, let’s talk about how all of this comes together. Every time you upload your tracks, they will be listed in Meta and TikTok’s sound libraries. Meaning, that now millions of influencers and general creators will have access to your sounds. Let’s check out a few case studies of tracks that became widely popular on social media.
L. Dre – ”Steven Universe”
L. Dre was an early adopter of TikTok, capitalizing on the platform before it became widespread. Inspired by another producer's success with remixes, L. Dre followed a similar path, remixing popular songs that quickly went viral. He maintained his visibility by consistently releasing remixes and eventually shifted to remixing theme songs from shows like Gravity Falls and Up.
His remix of Steven's Universe went viral after a fan suggested it in the comments. L. Dre didn’t actively promote the track, instead letting it resonate naturally with his audience. Though he released the beat in March 2020, it didn’t gain traction until October, when it began to spread widely across TikTok.
This organic success opened doors to major brand deals, including partnerships with Honda and Samsung. These companies saw the potential in aligning with L. Dre as his music gained momentum on TikTok.
Jawsh658 – ”Laxed (Siren Beat)”
Jawsh created the beat in New Zealand without the intention of going viral. But after uploading it to YouTube, someone posted it to TikTok, and it quickly became the soundtrack to a viral dance trend. Eventually, Jason Derulo noticed the track and collaborated with Jawsh on the song “Savage Love,” leading to over 1 billion streams and more than 31 million TikTok videos featuring his beat.
L. Dre and Jawsh658's stories are perfect examples of how a viral hit can generate huge opportunities—and with tools like Content ID & More, you can make sure you're compensated for it.
PRO TIP: To mirror the success of producers like L. Dre and Jawsh658, and maximize revenue from user-generated content on platforms like BeatStars:
- Reach out to influencers via DM or email, focusing on those with a substantial following.
- Ask them to feature your sound in their next social media post.
- Let the song accumulate plays and views.
Additional resources:
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