DistroKid isn’t only for individual musicians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Its Ultimate plans allow multiple artists to be managed from the same account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That can make DistroKid attractive to small independent labels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But should a label use it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you run a label releasing lots of music, unlimited uploads are attractive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A predictable annual subscription also makes budgeting easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a small label with five artists releasing frequently, that can be much more economical than paying per release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DistroKid says it passes through 100% of ordinary DSP earnings, minus banking fees and applicable taxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At catalogue scale, avoiding a distribution percentage can become financially significant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is where the comparison becomes more complicated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A serious label may need:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
royalty accounting<\/p>\n\n\n\n
multiple user access<\/p>\n\n\n\n
publishing administration<\/p>\n\n\n\n
neighbouring rights<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UGC management<\/p>\n\n\n\n
rights conflict tools<\/p>\n\n\n\n
delivery logs<\/p>\n\n\n\n
catalogue migration<\/p>\n\n\n\n
financial forecasting<\/p>\n\n\n\n
advances<\/p>\n\n\n\n
dedicated support<\/p>\n\n\n\n
API functionality<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bigger your label becomes, the less important the upload form is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Per-release charges should also be modelled at catalogue level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Something that costs $10 or $20 doesn’t sound significant until a label has hundreds of releases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It’s most attractive for small, technology-friendly labels that want self-service distribution and minimal commission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once a catalogue becomes a serious business, you should compare the entire infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Don’t ask only:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How cheaply can we upload music?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ask:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How effectively can we operate our rights business for the next ten years?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DistroKid isn’t only for individual musicians. Its Ultimate plans allow multiple artists to be managed from the same account. That can make DistroKid attractive to small independent labels. But should a label use it? The biggest advantage: simplicity If you run a label releasing lots of music, unlimited uploads are attractive. A predictable annual subscription also makes budgeting easy. For a small label with five artists releasing frequently, that can be much more economical than paying per release. Royalties are attractive too DistroKid says it passes through 100% of ordinary DSP earnings, minus banking fees and applicable taxes. At catalogue…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3360,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1378,2130,2360,1365,2361],"coauthors":[2],"class_list":["post-3834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-distrokid","tag-labels","tag-plans","tag-pricing","tag-record-labels"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n