Skip to main content

Downtown Music Content Policy

  • Updated

Updated: April 2026


This document outlines mandatory compliance standards for content quality, artist authenticity, and trust and safety initiatives to combat fraud and abuse of platforms. This Policy applies to all content, metadata, and associated assets (collectively, "Content") delivered by our clients ("you") or on your behalf to any Digital Service Provider (DSP) via the services of Downtown Music, including FUGA, CD Baby and Downtown Artist and Label Services (formerly DashGo).
 

This article unites information found in our guidelines on FUGA’s Approach to Trust & Safety, Preventing Artificial Streaming, FUGA's Enforcement Policy on Artificial Streaming, Best Preventative Practices in Copyright Compliance, Best Practices for Client Vetting, and more.

 

I.

Trust & Safety (Fraud and Abuse)

1. Stream Manipulation & Platform Integrity

Any attempt to artificially inflate play counts or manipulate consumption metrics is a violation of both Downtown and DSP policy. Penalties for any Trust and Safety violations include take down of content, withholding of payment, financial penalties, closure of specific user accounts, or even termination of your entire deal and all associated accounts.
 

  • Prohibited Activity: Any activity that artificially inflates play counts or manipulates consumption metrics (e.g., bot traffic) is prohibited.
    • Do not engage marketing parties that promise a stream outcome or playlist placement through artificial means.
  • Content Abuse: Content designed to ‘game’ the DSP royalty system, including unnatural or manipulative creation, design, formatting, or metadata, is prohibited.
  • AI Manipulation: Content designed to mislead users, such as AI-generated content which mimics popular artists is prohibited.

Manipulative Tactics

  • Altered Recordings: Uploading any version of a track that has been sped up, slowed down, or treated with reverb or similar alterations (including "remixed covers"), unless you also hold the necessary rights for the original recording and are distributing it, is prohibited.
  • Deceptive Audio: Uploading tracks which contain hidden samples or are falsely labeled to impersonate other existing recordings, regardless of who controls the original master is prohibited.
  • Subtle Manipulation: Recordings which are modified to artificially increase play count, such as those with inserted minimal or imperceptible delays are prohibited.
  • Excessive Re-Delivery: Distributing the same recordings multiple times without the recordings being part of an original or unique product that adds value is prohibited. This includes submissions where there are only minor, imperceptible differences between versions, or variations solely in the metadata or artwork.
  • Short Track Abuse: The release of tracks of insufficient duration with the sole purpose of artificially maximizing play count is prohibited.
  • Volume Concealment: Tracks which are embedded in video content at minimal or inaudible volume, also known as ‘parasitic or circumventive’ content, is prohibited
  • Inorganic Consumption: Plays, creations, or views generated by automated software, bots, or any other inorganic means is prohibited.
  • Ambient Sound Fraud: Submitting ambient sounds where the clear intent is to artificially increase the share of listening time or total play count is prohibited.

 

II.

Intellectual Property & Rights Integrity

You must own or control all necessary rights for the Content you distribute.

2. Rights & Clearance Requirements

  • Distribution Rights: Your agreement with us requires that you have the necessary rights for the music you are distributing. Distribution of any tracks where you do not own or control the Master Recording is prohibited.
  • Full Clearance: You must have the necessary rights for both the master recording (often from a label) and the underlying work (composition). In the event of a DSP claim, you must be able to present documentation to prove clearance. If you aren’t able to provide supporting documentation that demonstrates this, you will be deemed to not have the necessary rights.
  • Samples and Third-Party IP: It is your responsibility to ensure that no part of your release, including samples, infringes on the rights of any third party. You should have all the required licenses and clearances, as well as understanding which DSP’s allow content with cleared samples 
  • Public Domain (PD) Content: While a composition (song) may be in the public domain, the specific recording you are using may still be protected. You must own or control the rights to the Master Recording to distribute it.
  • UGC Fingerprinting: If your release contains samples from royalty-free producer packs, do not deliver for fingerprinting due to potential conflicts on UGC platforms.
  • Unlicensed AI Content: Content created wholly or primarily by AI models trained on copyright protected sound recordings without a license from the applicable copyright owners is prohibited. AI-generated content that mimics popular artists is also not permitted. This includes, but is not limited to, voice, image and likeness.

 

III.

Content and Artist Authenticity

3. Deception and Misrepresentation

You must maintain authenticity and consistency across all platforms.

  • Authenticity: The artist's true identity must be verifiable through official documentation or a clear and consistent digital footprint.
  • Prohibited Artist Names: You must not use generic, SEO-optimized artist names. Examples include names like "Baby Sleep Sounds" or "Music for Concentration".
  • Impersonation and Misrepresentation: Content that creates an association with another artist or label to trade off their name or reputation is prohibited. Content that could be misleading, such as "sound-alike" songs or tribute tracks, will be rejected.
  • Title and Artwork Restrictions: To ensure clean delivery, your product and/or track titles and artwork must not include:
    • URLs or unrelated product/brand references.
    • Emojis.
    • Generic SEO terms (e.g., "Yoga Music," "Sleep Music," "Chillout").
    • File format info (e.g., .mp3) or generic version info in parentheses.
    • The use of "AKA" unless it is officially part of the artist's name.
    • Logos or trademarks on artwork.

4. Metadata and Product Consistency

You should always deliver the same content, including metadata to all DSPs.

  • Consistency: It is prohibited to misuse DSP profile dynamics (e.g., listing a remixer as a Primary Artist on one DSP and a Remixer on another).
  • Repackaging: Re-packaging and redelivery of the same content in different ways is prohibited.
    • You must reuse the original ISRC and master recording if a track is included in a new release (e.g., a "Greatest Hits" album).
    • Do not re-upload the same track under a different ISRC.
  • Localization: Use the translations feature for localization. Do not upload the same track twice just with translated metadata to smaller stores.
  • Contributor Information: Be as exhaustive as possible when listing contributors (Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Engineer, etc.). You must be able to present documentation to justify how you classify your contributors.

5. Restricted Content & Distribution Strategy

  • Explicit Content: You must always properly apply the content advisory flag for explicit content. The use of "explicit" flags must be consistent across the entire release.
  • Noise Content: You are not allowed to deliver Noise Content (white noise, sleep, ambient sounds);
  • Minimum Track lengths: ‘Gaming’ minimum track length requirements on DSPs is not permitted.
  • Restricted content for UGC platforms: You must only deliver 100% exclusive and distinct content to UGC-enabled platforms. Ineligible content types include spoken word, blank audio, sound effects, ambient sounds, nature recordings, public domain material, generic production loops, or non-exclusive library music.

Commitment to Compliance

Downtown Music and our partners are dedicated to fostering a transparent, fair, and trustworthy global music ecosystem. Compliance with these Content Policy Guidelines and Rules, especially adherence to the Trust & Safety measures against manipulation and fraud, is not optional, but a non-negotiable requirement for all clients and their catalogs. We thank you for your cooperation in maintaining the integrity of the distribution chain and ensuring fair compensation for all legitimate creators.

In the event of any conflict between these Downtown Music Content Policy Rules, the terms of your individual distribution agreement and any specific DSP’s content guidelines, the following order of precedence shall apply: 1) your individual distribution agreement; 2) any specific DSP content guidelines; 3) this Downtown Music Content Policy.

Related articles