A beginner's guide to licensing online content (without the legal headache) 

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You Found The Video - Now What? 

Picture this, with Fathers Day right around the corner, you’re brainstorming ways to advertise your brand's holiday sale. You're browsing the web while you stumble upon the perfect video for your campaign. You think, “can I use this?” Well unfortunately, no. However you can use it if you obtain a license, which is much easier than one would think - especially if you have the right tools. Let's talk about how that works.

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Why Does Licensing Matter? 

There's a common myth that if something is on the web, it’s fair game. Just because content is on the internet and public for all to see, does not mean that it is free to use. From an ethical standpoint, it's important to respect creators' rights and their craft and give them credit where it is due. From a legal standpoint, no campaign wants to get pulled for using unauthorized content. Catch+Release is here to make sure brands avoid these nightmares, or worse, a campaign that ends up costing you money in legal fees.  

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So What Is “Licensing,” Exactly? 

Licensing, at its core, is the act of granting someone permission to have, use, and sell something, while ensuring creator compensation and recognition. You don’t need to become a copyright expert to understand licensing basics. Just know there are a few dimensions involved:

• Usage: What are you doing with the content? Will it appear in a digital ad? On TV? Across social channels? The more uses, the more permission you need.
• Duration: How long will the content live in the world under your brand’s umbrella? A week? A year? Forever?
• Geography: Where will your campaign run? In the U.S. only? Will it run globally? Licensing terms should reflect the scale of your media plan.

Now I know what you may be thinking, this all sounds like a lot of paperwork, but at Catch+Release, we handle it all for you. Licensing is what we do.

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How Catch+Release Makes Licensing Easy

We make it easy for producers, editors, marketers, and anyone to: 

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• Find content that fits the “vision.” With our Creator Community Marketplace, the best place to start any content search.
• Save it directly into your project, guaranteeing that you’ll always have a path to licensing if you ever need content in the future.
• Request clearance with a few clicks, we handle the rest - creator outreach, contracts, payments, and tracking rights. You stay focused on the creative, while we take care of the logistics (and the headaches).

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Instead of cobbling together spreadsheets, chasing approvals, and wondering if something will clear, Catch+Release brings everything under one roof. Our platform was built for the busy producers of the advertising industry. So it has been tested by the best.

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Quick Tips for Producers

Lets say you found the perfect piece of content for your campaign online, congrats! You can now add it to your project in Catch+Release. You’ll get a licensability score that helps us flag content that is unlikely to be cleared, so you don't waste time. Consult your brand's legal team early, you don’t have to loop them in at the last second, Catch+Release makes the process easier not just for you as the producer, but for legal, brand, and compliance teams too - everyone stays aligned, and your campaign stays on track.

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Licensing does not have to be intimidating or time consuming. When done right, it protects your work and supports creators. But most importantly, it opens up a world of authentic content that is proven to work harder and that everyone can enjoy. Want to see how others do it? Join Catch+Release as a creator/storyteller and explore the Creator Marketplace to see how producers use our platform. 

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