Royalty type 06 of 6

YouTube Content ID & Ad Revenue

YouTube is the world's most-used music platform. Are you claiming your share of its ad revenue?

YouTube Content ID is an automated fingerprinting system that matches your music against the billions of videos uploaded to YouTube every day. When a match is found, you can claim the ad revenue generated by that video, turning every fan cover, gaming stream, or viral clip that uses your music into a revenue source. On top of this, YouTube Music streams generate mechanical royalties through the MLC, adding a second layer of income from the same platform.

Administered through

YouTube / Google (Content ID ad revenue)MLC (YouTube Music mechanicals, USA)MCPS / PRS (YouTube Music, UK)DistroKid, TuneCore, CD Baby (via Content ID delivery)

Why artists miss this

Content ID is not automatic. You must deliver your music to YouTube's rights management system through an approved Content ID partner, typically a distributor or dedicated rights management company. Without this, every video using your music monetises for the video creator, not you. Given that fan-uploaded content and UGC can generate significant long-tail revenue, unregistered artists are giving away income on every viral moment their music experiences.

$100–$2,000+/yrfrom unmonitored Content ID claims alone

The other five royalty types

Mechanical Royalties Public Performance Royalties Neighboring Rights Synchronisation Royalties SoundExchange & Digital Performance

Find out if you're actually collecting youtube content id & ad revenue.