A record deal, a publishing agreement or a distribution contract is read by artists, managers, labels, distributors and platforms long after it is signed. Every clause, from rights and royalties to recoupment, territory and the use of artificial intelligence, has to work in practice, on a royalty statement, in a claim dashboard, before a collecting society and on every platform the music reaches.
Through Berk Hasan Ozdem, LL.M., the firm acts for artists, producers, songwriters, labels, distributors, publishers and platforms worldwide. We review offers for artists, draft complete contract systems for labels, negotiate distribution agreements and represent clients in copyright claims, streaming fraud allegations, withheld royalties and disputes with labels, distributors and platforms, across the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and beyond.
Scope of services
- 01Exclusive licence, single-track and master assignment agreements
- 02Distribution and label services agreements
- 03Music publishing, co-publishing and administration agreements
- 04Artist, producer, management and featured artist agreements
- 05Copyright claims, takedowns, content ID and ownership disputes
- 06Artificial intelligence, voice and likeness and AI training issues
- 07Streaming fraud allegations, withheld royalties and account suspensions
- 08Disputes with labels, distributors, publishers and platforms
- 09Any other agreement or dispute in the music and entertainment business
How we work
Each matter starts with a map of the rights, the money and the parties, from who owns the master and the composition to how revenue flows through distributors, collecting societies and platforms. We then review or draft the terms clause by clause, test them against how they will work on statements, dashboards and claim systems, and summarise the findings in plain English with a clear list of priorities.
Frequently asked questions
Under an exclusive licence the artist keeps ownership and grants the label the right to exploit the recording for a defined term and territory. Under an assignment, ownership of the master passes to the label, often for the full term of copyright. The difference matters for catalogue value and for what happens after the deal ends.
The first step is to obtain the notice, the data the distributor relies on and the relevant terms of the agreement. The allegation, the withholding and any account suspension can then be challenged on the basis of the contract, the evidence and the applicable law, through negotiation or, where necessary, proceedings.
Recording and distribution agreements often contain terms on ownership, term, recoupment and future uses of the music that are difficult to change once signed. A review before signature helps the artist understand what is being given up and which points are worth negotiating.
Every recorded song involves two separate rights: the composition, which belongs to the songwriters and their publishers, and the master recording, which typically belongs to the party that financed or owns the recording, often the label or the artist. The agreements decide how each of these rights is held and licensed.
Platforms generally provide procedures to dispute claims and takedowns. The first step is to gather evidence of ownership and licences, such as agreements, split sheets and release records. Where the platform procedure is not enough, the claim can be pursued directly against the claimant.
Whether AI-generated music can be copyrighted depends on the applicable law and on the extent of human creative contribution.