A song can be created in one country, owned in another, and monetized globally within seconds. But licensing that same song across borders is where legal complexity begins.

Disclaimer: This Article is for general informational purposes only and does not replace legal advice for specific situations.

TL;DR

Cross-border Licensing refers to the use of music across different jurisdictions, where multiple legal systems, collecting societies, and contractual frameworks apply simultaneously. Even though copyright is territorial, music exploitation is global. This creates challenges in rights clearance, royalty collection, and enforcement.

Understanding how rights travel across borders is essential for artists, publishers, labels, platforms, and businesses operating internationally.

What is Cross-border Licensing?

Cross-border Licensing occurs when a Musical Work or Sound Recording is used outside the country where the rights are owned or managed.

Examples include:

A Vietnamese song streamed on Spotify in the U.S.
A U.S. track used in a commercial in Japan
A global YouTube video using music across multiple territories

While the concept appears simple, the execution is complex because you are not licensing a song as a single asset, but rather clearing a bundle of rights that must be valid across different territories.

The core problem: Copyright is territorial, music is global

Copyright law is fundamentally territorial. This means rights are granted, recognized, and enforced on a country-by-country basis, not globally. There is no single "worldwide license" that automatically works everywhere.

In practice, this creates fragmentation across jurisdictions:

Rights are local: A license valid in one country does not automatically apply in another. For instance, a license explicitly cleared and valid in the U.S. does not automatically grant permission for use in the UK or Vietnam.
Different laws: Each country has its own copyright framework and interpretation. For instance, the U.S. does not recognize terrestrial broadcast royalties for Sound Recording, whereas most countries under the Rome Convention do.
Different licensing rules: Some markets rely heavily on collective management, others allow more direct licensing.
Different enforcement: Penalties, procedures, and enforcement intensity vary by jurisdiction.

The structural challenge

When music is used across borders, the licensing complexity comes down to three fundamental questions that must always be answered clearly before any global exploitation can safely occur.

1. Which law applies?

Copyright is governed by the laws of the country where the music is used, distributed, or made available to the public. Different countries may interpret rights differently (e.g., moral rights, fair use).

For example:

A video using music uploaded on YouTube and viewed in Germany → German copyright law applies to exploitation in that territory.
Use of a song in a TikTok video in the UK → subject to UK "fair dealing" rules (more limited than U.S. fair use)

2. Who controls the rights in each territory?

Rights are not always held by a single global owner. In many cases, they are split or administered differently by territory.

Example:

A publisher controls U.S. rights
A sub-publisher controls Southeast Asia
A CMO manages performance rights locally

3. Who collects and pays royalties?

Different types of rights are collected and distributed by different organizations.

Performance Rights → PROs in U.S. / CMOs in other countries (PRS for Music (UK); GEMA (Germany); SACEM (France);...)
Mechanical Rights → MLC in U.S. / CMOs in other countries (MCPS (UK – via PRS); SACEM (France); VCPMC (Vietnam);...)
Digital Performance Rights → SoundExchange in U.S / CMOs in other countries (PPL (UK); CPRA (Japan); SCPP / SPPF (France);...)

How Cross-border Licensing works in practice

NOTE: The diagram above illustrates a simplified flow of cross-border licensing.

Key risks in Cross-border Licensing

Cross-border licensing often fails not because of bad intent, but because of wrong assumptions about how rights work across territories. The risks usually fall into a few recurring patterns.

1. Licensing the wrong territory

One of the most common mistakes is clearing rights in a single country while distributing content globally. A license may only cover specific territories. But digital content is often accessible worldwide by default.

As a result, even if the music is properly licensed in one market, it may be unlicensed in all other countries where the content is available. This creates unintended infringement exposure at scale.

2. Licensing the wrong rights

Music is not a single right, it is a bundle of rights. Missing one layer creates legal exposure.

Example:

Cleared synchronization (sync) rights → but not master rights
Cleared performance rights → but not mechanical rights

Missing even one layer means the use is legally incomplete. In practice, this is one of the most common causes of disputes and takedowns.

3. Licensing from the wrong party

In cross-border scenarios, the party you are dealing with may not actually control the rights in all relevant territories. Specifically:

Rights may be split geographically
Local sub-publishers or CMOs may have exclusive authority in certain markets

Licensing from the wrong entity can lead to: conflicting ownership claims; duplicate payment demands; legal disputes over authorization.

4. Over-reliance on platforms

Many users assume that platforms like YouTube, TikTok, or Spotify handle all licensing on their behalf. This is a dangerous assumption.

Platform agreements are often limited, conditional, or incomplete
Some uses are monetized instead of fully licensed
Coverage can vary depending on territory, type of content, and type of use

This creates a false sense of security, where users believe they are compliant but still face: content claims; revenue sharing; takedowns or strikes.

5. Royalty leakage and delays

Cross-border royalty flows depend on multiple organizations and data systems working together. In reality, this process is far from perfect.

Data mismatches across territories are a common issue, especially when the same work is registered differently in multiple markets. Inconsistent or incomplete metadata — such as missing songwriter information, incorrect ownership splits, or unmatched identifiers — can disrupt the tracking and allocation of royalties. These technical gaps are often compounded by delays in reporting and distribution cycles, which vary significantly between countries and organizations.

As a result, these inefficiencies can lead to lost or underreported revenue, delays in payments across markets, and ongoing difficulties in reconciling financial data between parties.

6. Enforcement and compliance risk

Local authorities or organizations may enforce rights independently
Legal standards and penalties differ by market

As businesses scale globally, they face unexpected legal risks in unfamiliar markets and higher compliance complexity and costs.

Cross-border Licensing – When Licensing Across Borders