YouTube has been dabbling with getting more involved with the music industry, especially through sponsoring and streaming major concerts from around the world.
This time, YouTube is diving deeper as it has acquired RightsNow, a New York-based company that specializes in licensing and royalty payment management. Specifically, RightsNow works with artists, songwriters, record labels, distributors and online music services to manage their music rights.
The idea is that with the addition of copyright management resources, YouTube can better build a platform for songwriters and performers who use the site so that they can actually be compensated for their works online.
YouTube product manager David King explained on the official YouTube blog about how RightsFlow will fit in with the Google-owned video sharing site:
By combining RightsFlow’s expertise and technology with YouTube’s platform, we hope to more rapidly and efficiently license music on YouTube, meaning more music for you all to enjoy, and more money for the talented people producing the music. From music videos to live-streamed concerts, YouTube has become a launch-pad for both aspiring musicians and more established independent artists—which is why we have and will continue to invest in tools that make it easier for copyright owners to manage their content online.
Financial terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.
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