5-year reversion clause?

[revnet]

I'm curious about a couple lines that appear in a few listings and I'm wondering if anyone has had experience with anything like this. The lines:1) ...(songs) are needed by a great Production Music Library/Publisher that has signed tons of TAXI members over the years, and "has made money for many of them."2) Their deal is typically an exclusive agreement with a 5-year reversion clause.OK, so does this mean you can't use the song(s) anywhere else for 5 years and there's still no guarantee of any money?Is anyone here one of the tons of Taxi members that has signed with this publisher (or one like this) and have you made any money?Thanks,Jim

[Casey H]

Jul 4, 2008, 7:42am, revnet wrote:I'm curious about a couple lines that appear in a few listings and I'm wondering if anyone has had experience with anything like this. The lines:1) ...(songs) are needed by a great Production Music Library/Publisher that has signed tons of TAXI members over the years, and "has made money for many of them."2) Their deal is typically an exclusive agreement with a 5-year reversion clause.OK, so does this mean you can't use the song(s) anywhere else for 5 years and there's still no guarantee of any money?Is anyone here one of the tons of Taxi members that has signed with this publisher (or one like this) and have you made any money?Thanks,JimYes, this would mean you cannot use the song(s) elsewhere for that term and you could conceivably make no money. (But it could land you nice money down the road)... This is a very standard type of exclusive deal as you might enter with any music publisher, whether through TAXI or not. You assign the song to them forever. In the event they don't make a placement within N years (per the reversion clause), all rights revert back to you. Some publishers will have it as 3 years, but 5 is pretty common.If this is a very strong publisher with a track record, it may very well be a good deal for you. It's important that you find out as much as you can about the publisher. Also, you should have this contract reviewed by a qualified music attorney, especially since it is a long term exclusive (not that you shouldn't do that for other contracts).HTHCasey

[hummingbird]

Jul 4, 2008, 7:42am, revnet wrote:I'm curious about a couple lines that appear in a few listings and I'm wondering if anyone has had experience with anything like this. The lines:1) ...(songs) are needed by a great Production Music Library/Publisher that has signed tons of TAXI members over the years, and "has made money for many of them."2) Their deal is typically an exclusive agreement with a 5-year reversion clause.OK, so does this mean you can't use the song(s) anywhere else for 5 years and there's still no guarantee of any money?Is anyone here one of the tons of Taxi members that has signed with this publisher (or one like this) and have you made any money?Thanks,JimYes, an exclusive deal means you may not pitch the track(s) elsewhere during the length of the contract. The rest is up to solid pitching by the publisher to appropriate opportunities over time.There's no guarantee that you will make money with your tracks when placing them with music publishers or music libraries. However, they wouldn't sign the tracks if they didn't think they had merit. After that, it's a matter of things being pitched until something takes.I suggest you watch the Matt Hirt videos on youtube.

[squids]

I jes signed a couple of my favorites to a 3-year exclusive, rev. It was a bit wrenching at the time but I'm okay with it once I got used to it. However, I'd done my homework on the publisher and knew they had some clout. I figured if they chose my tracks, they must have a strong potential opp for 'em either now or really soon. Their whole reputation is based on choosing the correct songs for the correct projects so the clients are open to hearing from them again and again. If they think they can pitch my stuff, I'll give 'em 3 years to prove it, okay by me. Again, though, do your homework.....make sure the place can really do something foi ya before you sign.

[heinsite]

squids--was about to sign off, and read your post---like ALWAYS such good sense. and my bottom line is this: hell, MY BEST STUFF IS NOT WRITTEN YET,

[squids]

This is what I love about being human. We don't come with a soundtrack to tell us we're on the verge of the best song we're eva gonna write (thereby ruining it through sheer nerves) or to tell us that moment passed me by back in 1984. I never felt a thing.