ChipMusic.org - Indie Royalties

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-11T14:54:24Z

herr_prof wrote:

Make sure to get any such agreement in writing and notarized.

This!

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-11T14:25:37Z

Derris-Kharlan wrote:

Yeah that sounds pretty good to me. Personally I ask for half of flat up front but hey - whatever floats your boat.

Yes. I also do half up front with the other half payable on delivery of the tracks.

I also cap how many times they can have me rework a song. None of this "this track isn't exactly what I envisioned down to the last note so therefore it's not perfect and hence me not paying you"

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-11T13:55:09Z

Cementimental wrote:

Net or gross royalties? http://jerrodbalzer.com/net-royalty-vs-gross-royalty/

That's a good question. But when it comes to apps they usually call it profit sharing. I guess "profit sharing" implies getting a cut AFTER taxes and shit. So it's a bit more specific.

Edit: not taxes but costs.

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-11T11:42:07Z

10spd wrote:

Ok, so!
After receiving an alpha build of the game (and staying up far too late into the night enjoying the heck out of it) I have come to this:
$X per minute of music. $Y per sound effect (that was actually the client's idea, works for me!)
With Z% royalties on the backend.
Flat-rates are payable on delivery.
Seems pretty solid to me, but
Am I shooting myself in the foot here?
Thanks again to everyone for your great advice.

Yeah that sounds pretty good to me. Personally I ask for half of flat up front but hey - whatever floats your boat.

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-11T11:40:07Z

ShintarouMusic wrote:

Depends on how many songs they need, and length.
I'd go for 5-10$ per song; that might be cheap though compared to more established composers prices.
Think of how many hours you'll be putting into it and ask for something that sounds reasonable to you.
It probably also depends if they expect to make a good bit of profit off the game. If they are better known and have had good success with earlier games you should ask for more.

LOL no

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-11T11:21:13Z

Always oversell/offer higher than you'd think... and never give away your price in public ;P

..at least that's what people have usually told me to do

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-11T08:50:02Z

Net or gross royalties? http://jerrodbalzer.com/net-royalty-vs-gross-royalty/

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-11T02:20:59Z

I don't even think charging per minute of music covers it. A soundtrack of 30 1-minute pieces is usually a lot more work than a soundtrack of 10 3-minute pieces (all other things being equal). Basically, it's a complex issue; I don't think a single general policy will adequately address all cases.

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-10T16:42:48Z

Ok, so!
After receiving an alpha build of the game (and staying up far too late into the night enjoying the heck out of it) I have come to this:
$X per minute of music. $Y per sound effect (that was actually the client's idea, works for me!)
With Z% royalties on the backend.

Flat-rates are payable on delivery.
Seems pretty solid to me, but
Am I shooting myself in the foot here?

Thanks again to everyone for your great advice.

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-09T17:40:15Z

Not to beat a dead horse here or anything but asking for a $$ amount per song is silly. Per song is so arbitrary because a song could be a 15 second loop for a pause screen or maybe they want an 8 minute tour de force. A decent alternative would be to charge for song length. Come up with some number you think would be a fair amount for creating a 1:00 long song based on the amount of time you put into it. Balance that number with whatever you ask for in royalties. Unless you see the game going crazy good (i always like to play the game before writing for it) chances are the team wont be making money hand over fist so an upfront payment may be the way to go with a small % of royalties. Also, negotiate to retain the rights to you song or charge more for them to retain the rights. I think these are some standard practices. Also, I dont think many people will tell you upfront what their rates are.

Best of luck!

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-09T17:14:22Z

Some great advice in here, gang! Thanks.
Yeah if I end up going flat-rate, it's going to need to be worth the time.
I'm a graphic designer/photographer by trade, so I'm used to dealing with some royalty v. flat-rate stuff.
I appreciate all the insight.

Thanks for the perspective guys!

i'll update when the time comes.

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-08T03:25:17Z

There's no need to be sorry! I think some musicians (myself included to an extent) just get bummed out when people ask so little because it feeds into an assumption that's out there that music is less worth paying for than other creative services. I mean, musicians might be easier to find than programmers or pixel artists, but their work is comparable in time consumption, challenge, and importance. If people all over the place are charging a pittance for their work, then people start to expect that that's just how much music costs, which makes it much tougher for people to ever make a living doing music.

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-08T02:38:18Z

sorry for personally being so cheap, I guess.

I did suggest to charge more depending on the scale of the project, though.

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-08T02:33:58Z

At least do some division and realize what you're getting paid per hour at your asking price.

Re: Indie Royalties

2013-10-08T02:30:30Z

danimal cannon wrote:

ShintarouMusic wrote:
Depends on how many songs they need, and length.
I'd go for 5-10$ per song; that might be cheap though compared to more established composers prices.
.
That is crazy cheap. Don't ask for that.

Yeah, what the fuck? That's stupid low.