This Digital Music Distribution Agreement (the "Agreement") is a legally binding contract between DistroVibe ("DistroVibe," "Company," "we," "us," or "our"), an entity incorporated and governed under the laws of England and Wales, and you, the artist, record label, producer, or authorized representative ("Licensor," "you," or "your").
By registering for an account, uploading any sound recordings or associated metadata, or otherwise utilizing the DistroVibe platform and its associated distribution pipelines (the "Services"), you agree to be bound unconditionally by the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement. If you do not agree with these terms, you must cease all use of the Services immediately.
1. Definitions & Order of Precedence
1.1. "Content" refers to all sound recordings ("Masters"), underlying musical compositions ("Compositions"), album artwork, metadata, biographical information, videos, lyrics, and any other materials submitted by you to DistroVibe.
1.2. "Digital Service Providers" (DSPs) refers to third-party digital music platforms, streaming services, download stores, social media networks, and video platforms (including but not limited to Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube, TikTok, Meta/Instagram, and Deezer) where your Content is delivered.
1.3. "Backend Provider" refers to our technical delivery partners, ingestion rails, encoding affiliates, and sub-distributors that DistroVibe uses to facilitate digital asset ingestion, DDEX distribution, analytics reporting, and royalty accounting.
1.4. "Net Receipts" refers to the actual, verifiable revenue received by DistroVibe from DSPs or our Backend Provider directly attributable to the exploitation of your Content, less any applicable withholding taxes, transaction fees, chargebacks, or DSP penalties.
This Agreement forms an integral part of the overarching legal architecture governing your use of DistroVibe. In the event of any conflict, inconsistency, or ambiguity between the platform documents, the binding order of precedence shall be:
- The Anti-Fraud and Artificial Streaming Policy (supreme authority on artificial traffic, fines, and liquidated damages)
- The YouTube Content ID & Monetization Agreement (authority on YouTube CMS and fingerprinting)
- This Digital Music Distribution Agreement (authority on core distribution and royalties)
- The General Terms of Service (general platform terms)
2. Grant of Rights and Exclusivity
2.1. Exclusive Digital Distribution Rights: By uploading your Content to DistroVibe, you grant us the exclusive right, during the Term and throughout the world (the "Territory"), to reproduce, supply, publicly perform, communicate to the public, make available, distribute, encode, and monetize your Content across all DSPs.
You agree that while this Agreement is active, you will not allow any other digital distributor, aggregator, or third party to distribute the exact same audio recordings (Masters) featuring the same ISRC codes.
2.2. Sub-Licensing and Backend Utilization: You acknowledge and consent that DistroVibe uses enterprise Backend Providers to execute technical DDEX delivery to DSPs. You grant DistroVibe the right to sub-license all rights granted herein to our Backend Providers and their affiliates to ensure worldwide distribution and monetization of your catalogue.
2.3. Reservation of Ownership: DistroVibe will not edit, remix, resequence, or alter the artistic audio of your Masters. You retain 100% ownership of your underlying intellectual property and master rights. This is a digital distribution license, not a transfer of copyright ownership.
3. Account Tiers, Pricing, and Curation
3.1. Service Tiers: DistroVibe offers self-serve subscription plans, and a separate invite-based Partner program for established artists:
Artist, Artist Pro, and Label
Open registration. 100% of collected streaming royalties are credited directly to your DistroVibe wallet with zero distribution commission.
Invite & Curation only
Reserved for established artists and select catalogues requiring dedicated A&R support, priority marketing pitches, and custom commercial terms.
3.2. Right of Refusal: DistroVibe and our Backend Providers reserve the absolute right to reject, hold, or revoke the distribution of any Master, video, or artwork at our sole discretion for audio quality defects, copyright flags, or platform compliance violations.
4. Copyright Warranties, Indemnification & Fund Withholding
Strict Copyright Enforcement
DistroVibe maintains a strict zero-tolerance policy against unauthorized sampling, bootleg remixes, and copyright infringement.
4.1. Warranties and Representations: You represent and warrant that: (i) you are the sole and exclusive owner of the Content or have secured all necessary worldwide written licenses for beats, instrumental leases, cleared samples, and mechanical rights for cover versions; (ii) the Content does not infringe upon the copyrights, trademarks, moral rights, or privacy rights of any third party; and (iii) you have full legal authority to enter into this Agreement.
4.2. Indemnification: You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless DistroVibe, our Backend Providers, our DSP partners, and our respective directors, officers, shareholders, agents, and employees from and against any third-party claims, liabilities, losses, damages, costs, and expenses (including solicitors' fees) arising out of or connected with any breach or alleged breach by you of any warranty, representation, or covenant herein.
4.3. Authority to Withhold Funds & Freeze Balances: In the event of a copyright infringement claim, DMCA notice, ownership dispute, or legal notice regarding your Content, DistroVibe reserves the express right to freeze wallet payouts, withhold royalty disbursements, and retain balances in amounts reasonably necessary to cover potential legal liabilities, settlements, and legal defence costs.
5. Royalties, Accounting, and Tax Obligations
5.1. Royalty Payments: DistroVibe will credit your account with your share of Net Receipts in accordance with your chosen subscription tier. Payments become available for withdrawal once DSPs have reported and transferred funds to our Backend Provider and subsequently to us, which generally involves a reporting delay of 45 to 60 days following the end of the calendar month in which the streams occurred.
5.2. Responsibility for Third-Party Payments: You are solely responsible for paying any royalties and other income due to featured artists, producers, writers, publishers, and other record royalty participants, except where a DistroVibe Royalty Split has been configured for automatic distribution. DistroVibe's financial obligation is to pay the primary account holder and any configured split recipients.
5.3. Tax Compliance
You are entirely responsible for your own tax obligations. DistroVibe will report earnings to relevant tax authorities as required by applicable UK and international tax laws.
6. Fraudulent Activity, DSP Penalties & Cross-Collateralization
6.1. Zero-Tolerance Streaming Manipulation: DistroVibe strictly prohibits artificial streaming, bot traffic, automated playlisting scripts, click farms, and pay-for-play playlist manipulation.
DSPs (such as Spotify, Apple Music, etc.) may impose financial penalties, including fines of up to €10 per track, per month, or claw back previously disbursed royalties for confirmed artificial streaming or metadata manipulation.
You agree that you are fully and personally liable for all such fines and clawbacks. DistroVibe reserves the contractual right to cross-collateralize, offset (mahsuplaşma), and recoup these amounts directly from your wallet balance, pending payout requests, or future earnings across any release or associated account.
All financial penalties, cross-collateralization rights, liquidated damages, and account terminations related to artificial streaming are strictly governed by the DistroVibe Anti-Fraud and Artificial Streaming Policy, which is incorporated herein by reference.
6.3. Forfeiture of Fraudulent Revenues as Liquidated Damages
Any balances or royalties generated through artificial, deceptive, or manipulated streams are deemed null and void and shall be permanently retained by DistroVibe as liquidated damages to satisfy DSP restitution and administrative overhead.
7. Limitation of Liability & Statutory Exclusions (UCTA 1977)
7.1. Liability Cap: To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, in no event shall DistroVibe's or our Backend Provider's aggregate liability exceed the total amount of subscription fees actually paid by you to DistroVibe in the one (1) year period immediately preceding the date the claim arose.
7.2. Disclaimer of Warranties: The Services are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. DistroVibe does not guarantee that all DSPs will make your Content available, nor do we guarantee any specific number of streams, playlist placements, or revenue figures.
UK Statutory Carve-Out (UCTA 1977): Nothing in this Agreement shall exclude or limit DistroVibe's liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, or fraudulent misrepresentation, which cannot lawfully be excluded or limited under the laws of England and Wales.
8. Term and Catalogue Termination
8.1. Term: This Agreement commences on the date you register an account or submit Content and continues until terminated by either party.
8.2. Termination by You
Terminate at any time via a dashboard takedown request. Please allow 30-60 business days for all DSPs to process and remove the catalog globally.
8.3. Termination by DistroVibe
We may terminate account access and issue global catalogue takedowns immediately if copyright infringement, streaming fraud, or breach of terms is suspected or confirmed.
9. Governing Law & Asymmetric Jurisdiction (England & Wales)
This Agreement and any dispute or claim (including non-contractual disputes or claims) arising out of or in connection with it or its subject matter shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.
The User irrevocably agrees to submit exclusively to the jurisdiction of the Courts of London, England, provided that DistroVibe reserves the right to initiate legal proceedings against the User in the courts of the User's domicile or place of infringement.
9.3. Limitation Period: Any claim arising under this Agreement must be commenced within one (1) year after the date the asserting party first knew or reasonably should have known of the act or omission giving rise to the claim.