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YouTube Acquires RightsFlow To Help Artists License Music And Make Money

Leena Rao

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Leena Rao is currently a Senior Editor for TechCrunch. She recently finished graduate school at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, where she studied business journalism and videography. From 2004 to 2007, she helped lead Congresswoman Carloyn Maloney’s community outreach and relations efforts in New York City. She graduated from Columbia University in 2003, where she was... → Learn More

Friday, December 9th, 2011
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rights flow

YouTube has just acquired RightsFlow, a startup that manages music licensing and payment services.

Launched in 2007, RightsFlow helps online music services, record companies, distributors and artists license music and lyrics while also managing royalty payments for the rights-holders. The company’s proprietary licensing technology and 30-plus million song database allows RightsFlow to license content, render accounting, and pay royalties on behalf of clients.

As CEO Patrick Sullivan writes in his announcement: We’re pleased to now be taking a momentous step with the team at YouTube, that shares in our vision of solving the really challenging problem of copyright management. Combined with the worldwide platform and reach of YouTube, we’ll now be able to drive awareness, adoption, and licensing success to a much larger audience — ultimately benefiting users, artists, labels, songwriters, publishers, and the entire global music ecosystem.

YouTube says that RightsFlow has been at the “forefront of solving the complex issues of licensing and royalty payment management.” The startup’s technology will be integrated into the video platform to allow musicians to efficiently license music on YouTube. Clearly helping musicians get compensated for the use of their work make YouTube even more appealing a a platform to showcase music and talent.