Licensing Stock For Your Business, Organization, or Clients

Do you license stock photography, footage, or music for your business, organization, or clients?

If so, do you or someone in your business/organization review the licensing terms to ensure a clear understanding of the usage rights, scope of use, and whether your / your client’s intended usage aligns with those rights?

Don’t assume license terms and usage rights are universal across stock providers. They typically are not. And those license terms and usage rights will vary among stock photography, footage, and music.

Understand the differences between a standard license vs an extended or enhanced license and know the differences between royalty-free, rights-managed, and buy out rights.

If you’re licensing on behalf of a client, be clear on whether stock licenses can be assigned to your client at the time of licensing and/or how licenses may be transferred/assigned to your client post-licensing. In some cases, it may be best to have clients acquire licenses directly to avoid a complicated and lengthy transfer/assignment. Make sure clients fully understand the licensing terms and usage rights and provide all relevant information/documentation upon transfer/assignment of the licenses to the client.

When purchasing stock via subscription plans, be sure you know how usage rights may be affected if your subscription is canceled. While some stock providers may extend perpetual rights to use the stock after your subscription ends; others may not.