FAQ

General Questions
  • What is Amadea Music?
    Amadea Music is a UK registered company that in partnership with the state51 Conspiracy provides an optimum solution for digital distribution of your music content. We at Amadea believe that we should not work as a standard service company but help artists, labels and distributors adapt to and develop in the ever-changing music industry.
  • Why choose AMAdea Music?
    We have an excellent store network, a well organized online platform in which you can operate 24/7. Our team consists of people who like to work in the world of music. This motivates them to give their best to make our customers happy and well taken care of. And last but not least - with our promotion reinvestment model, our team makes our clients' development much more efficient.
  • What rights would I be giving away?
    You give us only the exclusive rights to distribute your music across our network for the term of the contract. Why exclusively? To achieve a more effective promotion and a higher revenue.
  • How much does it cost to distribute my music?
    Our distribution and promotion fee is 10% from your net revenue. We will deduct an additional 5% from them that will be used as a marketing budget for the promotion of your products.


Artist / Label / Distributor Questions
  • How much do I get paid?
    You will receive 85% from your net revenue. 5% from the rest 15% is reserved as a marketing budget for your music.
  • When will I get paid?
    Once the balance in your account has reached the payment threshold, then you will receive the owed amount. All payments are automated and processed within 10 working days.
  • Is there a minimum payout amount?
    Yes. There is a payment threshold - for artists it is €30, for labels it is €50 and for distributors €100. However you can raise the threshold in order to avoid multiple transaction fees if paid via bank transfer.
  • How do I receive my royalties?
    You can collect your money by choosing one of the possible payment options (PayPal or Bank Wire Transfer).
  • Negative Amount from Sales
    It is possible that we receive a negative amount for sales, which has been previously reported and paid to us. This normally happens when a recharge from a credit card company occurs and those sales are retrieved back from us in next reports by the retailer. Sometimes the reporting of negative sales may take a couple of months to show up in your accounting, if there are any. What happens is that we have already imported those sales into your account and perhaps some of them have already been paid. In order to make this clear and transparent, we decided to load the negative sales in the month we got them so you will see it with minus for the particular month.
    Receiving negative sales is not a 'must happen' situation, so don't panic!!! It happens quite rarely - unfortunately it is not something we can predict or avoid, hence you may see such every now and then.
  • How long does it take to show up on the music services once you deliver my album?
    This depends on the services as they need different amounts of time to process the product. In general it takes from a few days to 4 weeks. Once we send it to them, it's out of our hands and up to them when your release will be live there.
  • If someone downloads my song today - when do I see that in my account?
    This depends on how often this service reports to us. If it is one of the services that report each month then it should take about 4 months to see it reported in your account. There are services that report quarterly, etc. In case that your album has been released in the beginning of January, then you should probably see your first report from most stores around May. There is one additional month delay for Spotify. We always try to import the sales as soon as they are paid to us. Remember we report only those sales, which has been already paid to us! In order to report a music services' sales we need a sales report from them and also payment in full so we are not liable for unpaid sales and more importantly so we can apply an exchange rate to sales reported in a foreign currency to enable us to report to you in Euro and so we can pay out in Euro. We also have the problem that some services don't report sales very promptly, which means that we're unable to include them in your report even four months after the sales date. This means you may see sales reports from previous months as well. It's unfortunate but it's not something we have any control over.
  • Will you tell me when my music is live on the services?
    No, it's up to you to make sure that your release is live on the respective service and tell us if it's not so we can contact them. However please make sure that there has been at least 4 weeks after the approved date of your product as they may need more time to process your product.
  • Why aren't my songs on all services?
    We send out every release to the selected services. In some cases, it is ultimately up to the music service whether they accept the content. This doesn't mean that all of these services have rejected your music, as many of these services have limited capabilities and sometimes it takes longer to get new material up. They also will be focusing more on getting the top selling artists uploaded before they worry about anything else. Therefore the answer is that it will either take more time, or that they have decided to skip your product. In addition there are some stores that pick music themselves from our catalogue, which is their policy and we can't make them sell your music if they don't like to.
  • What currency do I get paid in?
    Euro (EUR). Currently all payments from Amadea Music are made in Euro (EUR). However, since we are mostly paying artists, labels and distributors via PayPal, it makes it very easy for them to transfer that money into any currency.
  • How many tracks can I upload?
    Unlimited. Currently Amadea Music doesn't have a limit for how many tracks you are able to upload.
  • Can I apply territory restrictions?
    No, we work with right holders who can grant us the rights to distribute their music in the whole world. This is related to our model for effective distribution and promotion. Can I make changes to my product after it has been delivered?
    Some changes are possible but there are such that can't be made. It is best to contact our support team and discuss what you need changed so that they help you find the best solution for your case.
    Note that any amendments take up to 4 weeks so it's best to double check everything and make sure that you submit the product correctly.
    If you are unsure about anything please let us know before submitting your product and we will help you make the right decision.
  • Why do I need a UPC barcode for digital distribution?
    All major digital music services require your album to have a barcode (UPC). It doesn't have to be on your artwork. It just has to be in our system, so we can send it to them. If you already have a barcode for that exact product you will be able to add it to our system during the creation process. Please note that the barcode for the physical and digital version of the same product should be different.
    If you don't have a barcode we will assign one for you free of charge.
  • Can I use the barcode Amadea assigned to my product for the physical version?
    No, there are certain restrictions and the barcodes we assign to your release can not be used for physical distribution. We do offer barcodes for physical distribution and you can order some through our services page in your account.
  • Can I use the barcode Amadea assigned to my product elsewhere?
    Yes, you can do that as long as it is a digital version of the exact same product. If it is a different version (remastered, remixed, bonus track version, etc.) of that product you will need a new barcode.
  • What is an ISRC and how do they work?
    The International Standard Recording Code (ISRC) is an international standard code for uniquely identifying sound recordings and music video recordings. An ISRC is a code that gets embedded as data into your song. It works as virtual identification and is a bit like a barcode. Once an ISRC code is assigned to any of your tracks you should always use the same ISRC code when releasing that sound recording in all products. You will need a new ISRC code if you are releasing a different sound recording of your track (remastered, remixed, edited version).
  • How do I get my ISRCs and UPCs?
    Amadea Music provides ISRCs and UPCs for FREE to all clients! Of course you will be able to provide ISRCs and UPCs on your own during the creation process in the appropriate fields. If you previously released the same sound recordings (even as part of a different product) please use the already assigned ISRCs.


Cancellation Questions
  • Can I cancel my account?
    You can cancel your account with us after you have cancelled all your Products. Please note that there is a non-cancellation period of 12 months for each product, reckoned from the approval date (approval date is the date when your album is approved from us and set for delivery to digital services). The non-cancellation period is a period of time in which you are not allowed to cancel your album and respectively your account.
  • How do I cancel my account?
    When you log into your account you will see the Cancel Account button in the menu on the right. If all your products are already cancelled, you will be able to cancel your account.
  • How do I remove my product from the services?
    You can start the cancellation procedure for each of your products from the menu "Products" in your account. Note that there is a non-cancellation period of 12 months for all products.
  • What happens when I request cancellation of my product?
    If you cancel a product we will request its immediate deletion from all services we have delivered it to. The deletion process usually takes up to 1 month. However as the royalties are being reported with delay there is a cancellation procedure which lasts 6 months from the date of your request. This helps us make sure you get all/most of the royalties for that product reported to you. If you don't cancel your account with us we will keep on reporting any royalties for your product even after the cancellation procedure.
  • What happens with my royalties after the cancellation request?
    There is a cancellation procedure for each product that lasts 6 months and which will allow us to report all or most of the delayed royalties during that time. If you don't cancel your account with us we will keep on reporting any royalties for your product even after the cancellation procedure.
  • What happens with future sales?
    All earnings during the cancellation procedure will be paid as usual, as long as the threshold has been reached. However, if the earnings are below the threshold after the cancellation procedure for all your products, they will be paid when you cancel your account with us. All royalties that you see in your account balance will be paid to you in 10 days after your account has been cancelled (not to be mistaken with 10 days after the account cancellation request). However if the transfer fee (depending on the payment method) is bigger than the amount we owe you no payment will be made.
  • What happens when I cancel my account?
    Once you have cancelled all your albums, you will be able to start the cancellation procedure of your account. Once you start the cancellation procedure you will receive an email with the end date of the cancellation procedure. The cancellation of each album lasts 6 months and your account will be cancelled after the 6 months for the last cancelled album have passed. If you have cancelled all of your products more than 6 months ago then the cancellation procedure for your account will be processed right away.


Copyrights
  • What do I need to know?
    Please note that when you submit your original music for distribution at Amadea Music, you are giving us your legally-binding word that you have all necessary rights required for distribution of that content, for both the sound recording and the underlying song. You are responsible to ensure that you have all necessary rights before submitting any of your music for distribution with us. Please carefully review the state51 / AMAdea Promotion Reinvestment Service Terms and Conditions and think carefully about the rights which you grant to us under its terms and conditions - do you have all the necessary rights to use, upload and sell your music? If you have any doubts as to whether you have the necessary rights for a particular track, please do not submit it to Amadea Music. Please note that we cannot provide you with legal advice and that you need to consult a lawyer for specific advice.

    Please note that in certain cases where Amadea Music is made aware of a potential copyright issue, Amadea Music might ask you to re-confirm your rights to use the content in question and/or to provide documentation as evidence of those rights. If you are unable to provide documentation that verifies your rights, we may not allow you to distribute that content. NOTE THAT using third-party content without authorization can carry significant penalties, including (but not limited to) loss of your Amadea Music account as well as civil and criminal penalties for copyright infringement should a copyright owner decide to pursue action against you.

    And remember that all content you submit through your Amadea Music account - including your artist biography, artist image and album art--must be entirely original, unless you have authorization to use them.
  • Do I need to own all the rights to the music I would like to sell?
    YES, you need FULL PERMISSION to do this!

    You must own the copyright for the sound recordings or have the authority or permission from the owner(s).
    If you didn't write the song (composition), it's OK, but you must find out who the copyright owner(s) is/are, and pay the publisher their mechanical royalties based on your download/streams activity.
    If you have samples in your music, they must be legally cleared and paid-for. No 'mix tapes' of other people's music, even if you are mixing in your own music.
    It's very important that you have all the rights and permissions! Files distributed online are monitored very carefully by lawyers. You can't just 'get away with it' so do everything thoroughly and legit.