Music Business/Law Tips - "Video Game License Fees"

When you license your music for inclusion on a video game, the royalties and fees depend upon how famous you are, how famous your song is, the prior history or anticipated sales of the game, who the game company is, the bargaining power of the parties, and the needs of the video game producer, artist and/or songwriter. Some agreements provide for an actual royalty but most provide for a one-time buy-out fee per song regardless of the number of games actually sold or how many times the game is played. There is no standard per se, but per game royalties range from 8 cents to 15 cents per song, and buyouts range from $1 to over $25,000 (with the average being between $2500-$5000). Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com