License

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Need a written certificate? If you are asked for proof of license (client, broadcaster, platform, distributor...), or simply for your records, you can generate a signed certificate yourself, in English and French. Create a free account, add the sounds used in your project to your favorites (using the heart on each sound page), then download the certificate from the “License certificate” section of the My account page.

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Feel free to:

Add in your credits: "Additional sounds: Joseph SARDIN - BigSoundBank.com". If needed, download my logo here.

Add a clickable link in your credits to: "https://BigSoundBank.com".

Make a small donation (Invoice available on request at joseph.sardin@gmail.com), or order on Thomann via this link (BigSoundBank receives 3% commission!)
Nothing is mandatory, but definitely appreciated...

You are allowed to:

Share, copy, distribute and communicate the material by all means and in all formats.
Adapt, remix, transform and create from material.
Use, including for commercial purposes.
Without any restrictions.
Without asking permission.

This is:

Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal
WTFPL license, which some summarize: Do what you want, I have NOTHING TO DO.
Public Domain Dedication.
Other personalized contract on request (joseph.sardin@gmail.com).

Content ID claim?

Sounds marked “Free and royalty-free” are not registered in Content ID or in any other recognition system. I claim nothing on the videos or tracks that use them.

What is Content ID?

Content ID is YouTube's automatic recognition system. Rights holders (labels, music distributors, artists) upload their works to it, and YouTube compares every new video against this database. When it recognizes a passage, it issues a claim on behalf of whoever uploaded the work: that party claims ownership of the passage. They can then collect the video's ad revenue, or have it blocked.

Other platforms use similar systems, as do some music distributors (TuneCore, for example), which scan a track before releasing it on streaming services.

Who is claiming, and why?

These systems do not check who actually made a sound: they trust whoever uploaded the work. The most common case: a musician or video creator uses one of my sounds (rain, thunder, ambience...) in their work, then has it registered in Content ID. My sound then becomes part of their fingerprint. Any other video or track using the same sound is then recognized as a copy of their work, and the claim is made in their name.

Such a claim is unfounded. This third party holds rights to their own work, not to my recording. These sounds are released under CC0, and I have never licensed them exclusively to anyone.

What should you do?

Dispute the claim on the platform concerned, quoting this page: https://bigsoundbank.com/licenses.html
Specify the number and title of the sound you used, shown on its page.
If the platform or your distributor asks for a written statement (master use license, meaning the recording itself, and derivative work license), generate it from your account:
1. Create a free account or log in.
2. Add the sounds used in your project to your favorites, using the heart on each sound page.
3. In the “License certificate” section of the My account page, enter the rights beneficiary: the person, band or company, and if possible the project concerned.
4. Download the PDF and send it to the platform.
The certificate is signed, in English and French, and covers both licenses requested. It has a unique number and a QR code leading to a verification page on this website, so the platform can confirm the document is genuine. For any special case, email me at joseph.sardin@gmail.com.

- Joseph SARDIN - Founder of BigSoundBank.com - About - Contact