SoundCloud Terms - How many users have read it?

[Blue Monkey]

You really need to hire a lawyer just to understand their contract but some of this is pretty obvious.

 

If any of you experienced SoundCloud users could explain to me how you "set parameters using the services" so that you do not grant the license set forth below (especially the text in bold), I'd love to be enlightened.

 

 

Your Content

Any and all audio, text, photos, pictures, graphics, comments, and other content, data or information that you upload, store, transmit, submit, exchange or make available to or via the Platform (hereinafter "Your Content") is generated, owned and controlled solely by you, and not by SoundCloud.

 

SoundCloud does not claim any ownership rights in Your Content, and you hereby expressly acknowledge and agree that Your Content remains your sole responsibility.

 

Without prejudice to the conditions set forth in Your Use of the Platform you must not upload, store, distribute, send, transmit, display, perform, make available or otherwise communicate to the public any Content to which you do not hold the necessary rights. In particular, any unauthorized use of copyright protected material within Your Content (including by way of reproduction, distribution, modification, adaptation, public display, public performance, preparation of derivative works, making available or otherwise communicating to the public via the Platform) may constitute an infringement of third party rights and is strictly prohibited. Any such infringements may result in termination of your access to the Platform as described in the Repeat Infringers section below, and may also result in civil litigation or criminal prosecution by or on behalf of the relevant rightsholder.

 

We may, from time to time, invite or provide you with means to provide feedback regarding the Platform, and in such circumstances, any feedback you provide will be deemed non-confidential and SoundCloud shall have the right, but not the obligation, to use such feedback on an unrestricted basis.

 

Grant of Licence

By uploading or posting Your Content to the Platform, you initiate an automated process to transcode any audio Content and direct SoundCloud to store Your Content on our servers, from where you may control and authorise the use, reproduction, transmission, distribution, public display, public performance, making available and other communication to the public of Your Content on the Platform and elsewhere using the Services. To the extent it is necessary in order for SoundCloud to provide you with any of the aforementioned hosting services, to undertake any of the tasks set forth in these Terms of Use and/or to enable your use of the Platform, you hereby grant such licences to SoundCloud on a limited, worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free and fully paid basis.

 

By uploading Your Content to the Platform, you also grant a limited, worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, fully paid up, licence to other users of the Platform, and to operators and users of any other websites, apps and/or platforms to which Your Content has been shared or embedded using the Services (“Linked Services”), to use, copy, repost, transmit or otherwise distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, adapt, prepare derivative works of, compile, make available and otherwise communicate to the public, Your Content utilising the features of the Platform from time to time, and within the parameters set by you using the Services. You can limit and restrict the availability of certain of Your Content to other users of the Platform, and to users of Linked Services, at any time using the settings on the sound page for each sound you upload, subject to the provisions of the Disclaimer section below. Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in these Terms of Use grants any rights to any other user of the Platform with respect to any proprietary name, logo, trademark or service mark uploaded by you as part of Your Content (for example, your profile picture) (“Marks”), other than the right to reproduce, publicly display, make available and otherwise communicate to the public those Marks, automatically and without alteration, as part of the act of reposting sounds with which you have associated those Marks.

 

The licences granted in this section are granted separately with respect to each item of Your Content that you upload to the Platform. Licences with respect to audio Content, and any images or text within your account, will (subject to the following paragraph of these Terms of Use) terminate automatically when you remove such Content from your account. Licences with respect to comments or other contributions that you make on the Platform will be perpetual and irrevocable, and will continue notwithstanding any termination of your account.

 

Removal of audio Content from your account will automatically result in the deletion of the relevant files from SoundCloud’s systems and servers. However, notwithstanding the foregoing, you hereby acknowledge and agree that once Your Content is distributed to a Linked Service, SoundCloud is not obligated to ensure the deletion of Your Content from any servers or systems operated by the operators of any Linked Service, or to require that any user of the Platform or any Linked Service deletes any item of Your Content.

 

Any Content other than Your Content is the property of the relevant Uploader, and is or may be subject to copyright, trademark rights or other intellectual property or proprietary rights. Such Content may not be downloaded, reproduced, distributed, transmitted, re-uploaded, republished, displayed, sold, licensed, made available or otherwise communicated to the public or exploited for any purposes except via the features of the Platform from time to time and within the parameters set by the Uploader on the Platform or with the express written consent of the Uploader. Where you repost another user’s Content, or include another user’s Content in a set, you acquire no ownership rights whatsoever in that Content. Subject to the rights expressly granted in this section, all rights in Content are reserved to the relevant Uploader.

[TheUncannyValley]

Is this the whole "Terms of Use" text or did you copy/paste a section from the middle?

 

There's a strong indication that the terms "Services" and/or "Linked Services" have been defined earlier in the text of the contract but I'm not seeing the definitions here.

 

That would be the clue to your (and now mine too!) question.

[Blue Monkey]

Thanks for your reply.

 

Is this the whole "Terms of Use" text or did you copy/paste a section from the middle?

 

No, just the sections "Your Content" and "Grant of License."

 

Here is a link to the full Terms page.

 

There's a strong indication that the terms "Services" and/or "Linked Services" have been defined earlier in the text of the contract but I'm not seeing the definitions here.

 

That would be the clue to your (and now mine too!) question.

 

"Services" appears to be defined as SoundCloud but I don't see how that answers my question.

[basils]

I think this may be related to the kind of license terms you choose when uploading.

If you choose "private" only those who you give links to can access your "sounds".

If you don't choose private, then it is essentially a "creative commons" license. You will be able to choose the parameters for this license

when you are uploading the "sounds", which extend from absolutely wide open use as you want, to you cannot use without permission.

Copyrights still apply.

There are a lot of people on Soundcloud who use the creative commons as a source for sampling, and are passionate about this freedom.

It's the age old conundrum. I want to get my stuff out there to be heard, but once it's out there, well it's out there, and really I don't have real control.

[Blue Monkey]

Thanks basils!

 

I wasn't aware that you could choose the parameters upon uploading. So if I want to utilize SoundCloud so I can embed the songs in my site, which may work much better for most visitors, I can just make it "private" and visitors to SoundCloud won't be able to access my music on SoundCloud, they will only be able to listen to the embeds on my site or if I provide a link to SoundCloud?

 

And in that scenario, no license for use is granted?

 

It would be nice if SoundCloud would spell it out for us.

[TheUncannyValley]

Hey Blue Monkey,

 

Even though I attempted to answer your initial question, I'm now with you in wondering about similar things.

 

I give you credit for raising these questions to begin with. I've got a lot going on right now (ok, like who doesn't?) and I just went ahead and set up a SoundCloud account without giving it much thought at all.

 

I'll continue watching this thread. If you happen to come across more information elsewhere, would you be cool enough to share it, either here or privately (pending the Logic Pro Help-com board rules)? Thanks in advance!

 

Russell S.

Las Vegas, NV

[Blue Monkey]

Hey Blue Monkey,

 

Even though I attempted to answer your initial question, I'm now with you in wondering about similar things.

 

I give you credit for raising these questions to begin with. I've got a lot going on right now (ok, like who doesn't?) and I just went ahead and set up a SoundCloud account without giving it much thought at all.

 

I'll continue watching this thread. If you happen to come across more information elsewhere, would you be cool enough to share it, either here or privately (pending the Logic Pro Help-com board rules)? Thanks in advance!

 

Russell S.

Las Vegas, NV

 

Hi Russell,

 

No problems. I didn't mean my reply in any negative manner (this mode of communication can often be misunderstood) but even with the definition of Services it still is vague what SoundCloud is meaning in their terms. Perhaps that's what they want, I don't know, but I'm always careful about posting my work on a site with terms like SoundClouds. I never like to see Grant of License when I am placing content owned by me. If someone wants to use my work in some way they can contact me directly and I will decide if I want to Grant License to them and then it will be a contract written by me and restricted to certain uses. I refuse to just give my rights away by utilizing someone's service. This is becoming more common these days. If you want to have your music mastered at Abbey Road Studios online service they state in their Terms that they have the right to use your work, make derivative works...worldwide use...

 

One must be cautious since these Terms are often unread by many and just by using their service (free or paid service) they are sometimes assuming rights on your work based on the grounds that you accept the terms simply by using their service.

 

Of course, if I get to the bottom of what they mean specifically I will post it here but since I don't plan to bring their Terms to a lawyer I'm not sure I'll ever find the answer. I'm focusing on my own web site and ways to improve it instead of falling back on SoundCloud.

[TheUncannyValley]

Hey,

 

I just wanted to leave a quick note, I wasn't offended in any way nor was I attempting to be snide or snarky. *

 

You said it quite well, "...(this mode of communication can often be misunderstood)...". Truer words are rarely spoken, and misunderstandings can come from both sides. It's all good.

 

I was just trying to say that you brought up a very good question in your original post. Its one I hadn't thought about and it piqued my interest. When my initial, brief search of the contract didn't offer a solution, I became even more curious about Soundcloud's terms concerning my music.

 

 

> ...if I get to the bottom of what they mean specifically I will post it here...

 

That's also what I was hoping. I'll do the same if I should find resolution. Thanks!

[Blue Monkey]

> ...if I get to the bottom of what they mean specifically I will post it here...

 

That's also what I was hoping. I'll do the same if I should find resolution. Thanks!

 

Cool, thanks!