Terms of Service

By creating an account on Vinylaunch (the “platform”), you agree to these Terms of Service and our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not create an account.

The platform is operated by Vinylaunch LLC (the “Company”). Throughout these terms, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to the Company; “you” refers to the account holder.

You must be at least 13 years old to create an account on Vinylaunch. Paid features — including subscriptions, crowdfunding pledges, and direct artist support — require that you be 18 or older, or that you have parental consent under the law that applies to you.

Date of birth and age-restricted content. All accounts must provide a date of birth at signup. We use your date of birth to gate mature artistic content — for example, suggestive album art or music-video stills that are policy-compliant but not appropriate for under-18 viewers — from users under 18 and from anonymous visitors. Your date of birth is never displayed on your public profile, and we do not share it with other users. Existing accounts that pre-date this requirement may not yet have a date of birth on file; until they do, mature artistic content displays blurred for that account, with a prompt to complete the profile.

Business accounts (service providers, record stores, radio stations, creator & VLogCast channels) require that the person creating the account be authorized to bind the business. The vendor signup flow asks you to attest that you are the primary business account manager for the entity you represent.

Sanctions and prohibited jurisdictions. The platform does not permit use by individuals or entities located in countries subject to comprehensive U.S. economic sanctions, or by individuals or entities designated on the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List or any equivalent U.S. government restricted-party list. Users who misrepresent their location or identity to circumvent these restrictions will have their accounts permanently terminated and any associated funds frozen pending review.

Vinylaunch supports several account types: Solo Artist, Band, Service Provider, Record Store, Radio Station, Creator & VLogCast Channels, and Fan (with multiple fan tiers). Each type has features, pricing, and obligations specific to it. The full breakdown is on the Pricing page.

You are responsible for keeping your account credentials secure and for any activity that happens under your account. If you believe your account has been accessed without authorization, contact info@vinylaunch.com immediately.

The display name and slug you choose at signup become part of your public URL on the platform. Names that impersonate other people, use trademarks you do not own, or are otherwise misleading may be reclaimed at the Company’s discretion.

Vinylaunch never takes ownership of or rights to your catalog. Nothing in these Terms grants Vinylaunch any ownership of, or exclusive license to, master recordings, compositions, lyrics, or any other intellectual property you create or upload to the platform.

By uploading content, you grant Vinylaunch a limited, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to host, transmit, transcode, and display the content for the sole purpose of operating the platform on your behalf — for example, streaming your tracks to fans you’ve granted access to, displaying your campaign images, or routing your tracks to creator channels you’ve opted them into. This license ends when you remove the content or delete your account.

You represent that you own or have the necessary rights to anything you upload. For cover songs, the rights-attestation flow at upload time documents that you have obtained or are obtaining a mechanical license. For samples and interpolations, the pre-clearance flow documents the source clearance.

What you can upload. The recording has to be yours to upload — you control the master, and you are the one uploading it. You do not have to own every share of a song: co-writes, covers you hold a licence for, and public-domain works are all welcome. What matters is that the recording itself is not controlled by someone else, such as a label or a distributor. Being under a label or distribution agreement does not exclude you from Vinylaunch — many artists control some or all of their own masters, and you can upload whatever is yours.

Vinylaunch is a music-industry platform. All content uploaded, published, streamed, or distributed through the platform must be directly related to music, music creation, music industry services, or the careers and work of musicians and music industry professionals who are subscribers to the platform.

The following content is outside the platform's permitted scope and may not be uploaded regardless of whether it otherwise violates any other provision of these Terms:

• •Content that is not related to music, music creation, or the music industry.
• •Content that features, promotes, or centers on artists, bands, or recordings that are signed to or licensed by a major or independent label or publisher to which the uploading user has no affiliation or rights.
• •Content that uses commercially licensed music owned or controlled by a third-party label, publisher, or rights holder without documented clearance.
• •Content created primarily to promote, advertise, or drive traffic to competing platforms or external commercial services unrelated to music.
• •General entertainment, lifestyle, political, or commentary content that is not specifically and directly related to the music industry or the uploading artist's own career and work.

Creator & VLogCast Channels. Creator & VLogCast Channel subscribers are specifically reminded that their permitted content is limited to music-related video and audio content — including artist interviews, studio sessions, music reviews, music industry commentary, live performance coverage, and similar music-centric programming. General video content outside this scope is not permitted regardless of production quality or audience size.

The platform reserves the right to remove out-of-scope content at any time and without prior notice. Repeated out-of-scope uploads may result in account suspension or termination.

You tell us who to pay.When you upload a recording you may list the people who share in the revenue it earns on Vinylaunch, with each person's percentage. This list is separate from the songwriting credits you register with a performing rights organization or the MLC — a recording may involve people who did not write the song, and a song may have writers who had no part in your recording.

Where we can pay directly, we do. If a person you list has a Vinylaunch account with payouts set up, we pay them their stated share of the platform revenue that recording earns, directly, at the same time we pay you.

Where we cannot, you are responsible. We cannot pay someone who does not have a Vinylaunch account or has not completed payout setup. Their share is paid to you, and you — as the account holder and the party representing the rights in the recording — are responsible for passing it on and for ensuring everyone entitled to a share of the revenue you collect is properly compensated. This applies to any royalties or shares owed to creative parties to the work.

We do not adjudicate splits. The percentages are yours to agree among yourselves. If a person you have listed formally disputes their share, payouts for that recording are held for everyone named on it until the dispute is resolved — because a disputed percentage puts every other share on the recording in question too. Vinylaunch does not decide who is right, and does not act as an escrow agent, arbitrator, or party to any agreement between you and your collaborators.

An International Standard Recording Code (ISRC) uniquely identifies a specific recording. It is the key that external royalty administrators — including SoundExchange, performing-rights organizations, and the Mechanical Licensing Collective — use to attribute plays to a recording and pay out the royalties owed for it. Accurate identifiers are what make external royalty collection possible.

You are strongly encouraged to provide a valid, accurate ISRC for every recording you upload or import. If you do not have one, Vinylaunch can assign an ISRC on your behalf where you consent to platform assignment; you may also decline. Where you provide your own ISRC, Vinylaunch uses it as-is and does not overwrite it.

Providing accurate identifiers is your responsibility. Vinylaunch attributes and reports royalty-bearing activity based on the identifiers associated with a recording at the time that activity occurs. A missing ISRC, or an incorrect, mistyped, or mismatched ISRC, may prevent a recording's plays from being attributed and collected by external royalty administrators.

Failure to provide an ISRC, or providing an inaccurate ISRC, will not entitle you to retroactive compensation, back-payment, or re-attribution of any royalties, revenue, or plays that occurred while the identifier was missing or incorrect. Compensation is not recalculated for periods during which a recording lacked a valid, accurate identifier. Adding or correcting an ISRC takes effect prospectively only.

A fan hearting or backing you does not give you their contact details. Support and contact are two separate things on Vinylaunch, and they reach you through two different doors. Someone who hearts, favorites or backs you appears to you as a supporter — what they support, in what way, and since when, plus their city and state if they chose to share that. You never receive their name or their email address through that door, and there is no setting either of you can change that makes you.

A contact list is the other door. A fan joins your contact list from your profile, deliberately, one artist at a time. Only then do you receive their email address, along with whatever part of their name they chose to give — their full name, their first name only, or none of it.

What you may do with it. You may use the email addresses on your contact list to communicate with those fans about your own music, releases, shows and campaigns. That is the purpose they agreed to.

What you may not do with it. You may not sell, rent, trade, lend, publish or otherwise transfer the list or any address on it to anyone else — including a label, manager, promoter, agency, or another artist — and you may not add these addresses to any other mailing list, platform or service they did not join. If someone else sends mail on your behalf, they act as your agent and you remain responsible for what they do with it.

Leaving has to mean something. A fan can leave your contact list at any time, and doing so removes them from every future download. A download you have already taken is a snapshot: we cannot reach into a file saved on your computer, so honoring a departure is your obligation, not a technical guarantee we can make for you. If a fan leaves your list, or asks you directly to stop, you must stop mailing them and must not re-add them.

You are responsible for your own mailings. Once contact details are in your hands, you are responsible for handling them lawfully — including honoring unsubscribe requests and complying with the email, marketing and data-protection laws that apply to you and to the people you are writing to. Vinylaunch does not send your mailings for you and is not a party to them.

Supporter cities are not a contact list. City and state are shared so you can see where your support actually is and where it might be worth playing. They are not contact details, and treating them as a way to identify or reach an individual fan is a violation of these terms.

Misusing fan contact details is grounds for suspension or termination under Section 16, and may be reported by the affected fan at any time.

Vinylaunch works only with labels, publishers, agencies and firms that do not own artist masters or catalogs outright. If your business acquires or takes ownership of masters or catalogs — now, or as an outcome of any agreement you offer artists — you may not hold a service-provider account here and you may not advertise on the platform. Businesses operating exclusively under term royalty agreements, where the artist keeps their masters and catalog, are welcome.

This is the same standard Vinylaunch holds itself to: the platform never takes ownership of an artist's catalog, and it exists so artists keep what they create. The question is asked at sign-up and again whenever a business changes its answer; the answer is recorded with the exact wording it was given under.

We reconcile the answers. Artists on Vinylaunch are asked to identify any label or distribution agreements they are under, and may name the businesses involved. Those answers are compared against what labels tell us about their own rosters. An answer that cannot be reconciled may lead us to contact the artists concerned, and a business found to have answered inaccurately may lose its account and its ability to advertise here. Artists' answers are private, are never shown to any label, and never affect the artist's own account or standing.

Service providers represent that they are qualified to perform the services they list, and that any work they deliver to artists meets the standards a reasonable professional would apply in that field.

Reviews of service providers are written by the artists who actually engaged them. The Company does not edit reviews for tone, but may remove reviews that violate the Acceptable Use rules below (defamatory, harassing, off-topic, etc.). If you believe a review is unfair or inaccurate, you may dispute it through the platform’s review dispute flow once available.

Fan subscriptions are month-to-month. You can cancel at any time through your account settings; cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period. We do not prorate refunds for partial months. The Stripe processing fee on a recurring subscription is absorbed by Vinylaunch and is never added to your subscription price.

For tiers with patronage (Artist Fan and Sonic Support), your subscription's patronage pool divides across the favorite artists you have designated on the date monthly distribution runs — the fewer favorites you fill, the more each receives. If you have designated no favorites, that pool flows to the philanthropic instrument program; it is not refunded. On Sonic Support, the portion of your payment above $10 is additionally directed to the artists you actually listen to, based on your qualified listening.

Supporting an artist does not share your contact details. Hearting, favoriting or backing an artist tells them that someone supports them, in what way, and since when — and your city and state if you turned that on. It never tells them your name or your email address. Your contact details reach an artist only if you join that artist's contact list from their profile, which you do deliberately and one artist at a time. You can see every list you have joined in one place and leave any of them whenever you like; leaving removes you from every future download, though it cannot reach a file an artist has already saved. Artists who receive your details are bound by Section 5D.

Direct Fan Support. Direct one-time and recurring contributions to specific artists are processed with 0% platform fee. The Stripe processing fee is added as a separate, itemized line you cover at checkout — there is no opt-out — so the artist receives 100% of the amount you intend to give.

Support payments are final. Because the money goes to the artist immediately, a completed support payment is not refundable — one-time or recurring. Please check the amount before you confirm it. You can cancel recurring support at any time from your account, and cancelling stops all future payments; it does not refund payments already processed. This does not affect your rights where refunds are required by law, and it does not apply to a payment made without your authorization — if you believe a charge was not made by you, contact us.

Crowdfunding campaigns are all-or-nothing and charge-on-success. When you back a campaign your payment method is securely saved with our payment processor — it is not charged at pledge time. Your card is charged only if and when the campaign reaches its goal. If the campaign does not fund, nothing is ever charged, so there is no refund — no money changed hands.

After the funding deadline there is a single 5-day final-cancellation window. You may cancel your pledge for free at any time before your card is charged. If a campaign finishes within 5% of its goal, the artist may take a one-time 5–10 day extension; pledges placed during a closing extension cannot be canceled and this is disclosed to you before you pledge.

On a successful campaign the platform fee is 7% of pledges (5%for founding subscribers). The Stripe processing fee is added as a separate, itemized line you (the backer) pay on top — so the artist's take is never reduced by payment processing. The artist receives the pledge amount less only the Vinylaunch platform fee. Once a campaign funds, refunds are handled by the artist directly, not Vinylaunch.

Reward fulfillment is the artist’s responsibility. The Company is not a party to the artist–fan delivery agreement. If you have a dispute about reward fulfillment, first contact the artist directly. If that fails, contact info@vinylaunch.com and we will assist within reason. Repeated fulfillment failures by an artist may result in account suspension.

All payments are processed by Stripe and Stripe Connect. By using the platform you agree to Stripe’s applicable terms and Stripe Connected Account Agreement.

Subscriptions renew automatically until cancelled. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period. Failed payments may result in subscription pause or account downgrade per the platform’s pause-state policy.

No peer-to-peer money transmission. The platform does not facilitate personal or peer-to-peer money transmission. All payments are processed through the platform as the merchant of record for transactions between fans, artists, vendors, and other participants. Vinylaunch is not a money services business and does not provide money transmission services. The platform may not be used to send money to other users outside the platform's defined transaction surfaces (subscriptions, pledges, direct fan support, vendor bidding, ticket sales, merch sales, and settlements).

The first 5,000 artists and 2,000 service providers to complete paid signup are designated founding subscribers. Founding-subscriber status locks in a 5% platform fee on crowdfunding and a $5/month subscription, permanently. The Company commits these rates for the lifetime of the founding-subscriber’s account.

The 3-month free trial does not reserve founding-subscriber status. Only paid signup does. Founder-issued invite codes that grant founding-subscriber status are documented separately and count against the founding caps.

You agree not to use the platform to:

• •Violate any law or third-party right (including intellectual property rights).
• •Upload content you do not have the rights to upload.
• •Impersonate another person or misrepresent your affiliation with anyone.
• •Spam, phish, harvest credentials, or engage in any abusive automated behavior.
• •Interfere with or disrupt the platform’s operation, security, or infrastructure.
• •Attempt to circumvent rate limits, signup gates, or other platform controls.
• •Use the platform to launder money, commit fraud, or evade taxes.
• •Harass, threaten, or discriminate against other users.

Prohibited content — monetization explicitly barred. The following content categories may not be uploaded, published, distributed, crowdfunded, subscribed to, or otherwise monetized through Vinylaunch under any circumstances:

• •Child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The platform strictly prohibits any content that sexually exploits or depicts minors in any form, including child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Any such content will be immediately removed, the responsible account will be permanently terminated without appeal, and the matter will be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) CyberTipline and relevant law enforcement authorities as required under 18 U.S.C. § 2258A. We have zero tolerance for this category of content.
• •Broader minor safety. Content that sexualizes, exploits, endangers, or targets minors in any way is strictly prohibited, including content that is suggestive of minors in a sexual context even if not explicitly graphic. The platform also prohibits any use of the platform to facilitate inappropriate contact with, solicitation of, or grooming of minors.
• •Non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII). The upload, distribution, or monetization of non-consensual intimate imagery — commonly referred to as “revenge porn,” meaning sexually explicit content depicting a real, identifiable person without their verified consent — is prohibited. Violations will result in immediate content removal, permanent account termination, and reporting to relevant authorities.
• •Human trafficking and exploitation. Any content, solicitation, advertisement, or activity that facilitates human trafficking, sexual exploitation, forced labor, or any form of modern slavery is strictly prohibited. Any such content will be immediately removed, the account permanently terminated, and the matter reported to the National Human Trafficking Hotline and relevant law enforcement.
• •Adult content and services. Content containing nudity, sexually explicit material, or explicit sexual acts — including but not limited to subscriber-only explicit images or audio/video — is prohibited. Vinylaunch is a music-industry platform; adult content of any kind falls outside our permitted use.
• •Terrorism and violent extremism. Content that promotes, glorifies, incites, or facilitates acts of terrorism, mass violence, or violent extremism is prohibited. This includes content produced by or in support of designated foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs) as defined by the U.S. State Department — including recruitment materials, propaganda, financing solicitation, and operational planning content. Content that promotes hate speech or incites violence toward any person or group based on race, religion, disability, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, or any other immutable characteristic is also prohibited. This prohibition applies to campaign descriptions, artist profiles, uploaded media, and any other user-generated content on the platform.
• •Intellectual property and proprietary rights infringement. Uploading, sharing, or monetizing content that infringes any intellectual property right is prohibited, including copyright, trademark, trade secret, or right of publicity. This includes the unauthorized use of another person's name, likeness, voice, image, or persona for commercial purposes without their documented consent.
• •Copyright-infringing content. Distributing or monetizing copyright-infringing recordings is prohibited. This includes leaked albums or unreleased recordings obtained without authorization, unauthorized copies or redistributions of commercially released works, and any bootleg recordings not covered by a valid rights clearance. Cover songs require a mechanical license; samples and interpolations require source clearance — both are attested in our upload flow.
• •Externally licensed or label-controlled content. Content that incorporates recordings, compositions, or performances owned or exclusively licensed by a record label, music publisher, or rights holder to which the uploading user has no documented rights is prohibited. This includes but is not limited to: background music from commercially released recordings, interpolations of major-label catalog without clearance documentation, and content that monetizes the likeness, name, or recorded performances of artists signed to or controlled by third-party labels or publishers. Discovery of such content will result in immediate removal and account suspension pending resolution under the protocol described in Section 11A.
• •Drugs and controlled substances. Content that promotes, advertises, or facilitates the sale of illegal drugs, controlled substances, drug paraphernalia, or the unlawful distribution of prescription medications is prohibited.
• •Misinformation and consumer fraud. Content designed to defraud, deceive, or materially mislead consumers is prohibited, including fake artist profiles, fraudulent campaigns, misrepresentation of artist identity or catalog ownership, falsified credentials for service-provider accounts, and any campaign description that materially misstates what backers will receive.
• •Illegal gambling and sweepstakes. The platform does not facilitate illegal gambling, unlicensed lotteries, or sweepstakes that violate applicable law. Any promotional contest, fan challenge, or competition conducted on or through the platform must comply with applicable federal and state sweepstakes and contest laws.

Platform monitoring. Vinylaunch actively monitors the platform for violations of this Acceptable Use Policy. We use both automated content moderation tools (third-party content scanning at upload) and human review processes to detect and remove policy-violating content. We reserve the right to remove any content, suspend any account, and terminate any subscription at our sole discretion for violations of this policy.

Law enforcement cooperation. We cooperate fully with law enforcement investigations and valid legal processes related to content on the platform, including subpoenas, court orders, and statutorily required reporting (such as NCMEC CyberTipline reports of CSAM under 18 U.S.C. § 2258A). We do not voluntarily share user data beyond what such legal processes require, and we resist over-broad requests; see our Privacy Policy for details on how we handle law-enforcement requests for user data.

Violations may result in immediate content removal, account suspension, or permanent termination, with or without prior notice depending on severity. Content that violates these rules is also subject to reporting to relevant authorities where required by law.

This Section governs how the platform responds when a third-party label, publisher, or other rights holder credibly claims that content on the platform incorporates material they own or exclusively license. It applies in addition to — and does not replace — the standard DMCA process described on our DMCA page.

When the platform receives a valid DMCA takedown notice or other credible external-rights claim against content on the platform, the following timeline applies:

1. Day 0 — Removal & suspension. The challenged content is removed immediately upon receipt of a valid notice. The account responsible for the upload is suspended pending resolution. Suspension means the account remains accessible to the account holder for communication and resolution purposes only; all public-facing content, monetization, payouts, and new transactions are paused.
2. Days 1–90 — Resolution window. The account holder and the claiming rights holder may resolve the matter through a valid license agreement, a documented release of the claim, or a determination that the claim was invalid. Resolution requires mutual written confirmation from both parties. The account holder may also submit a counter-notice under the DMCA during this window if they believe the claim is invalid; standard DMCA counter-notice procedures apply.
3. Day 90 — Resolution outreach. If the matter remains unresolved at day 90, the platform initiates direct communication with both parties to encourage resolution and to clarify the escalation path that follows. A 30-day grace period begins.
4. Day 120 — Permanent account disablement. If the matter remains unresolved at day 120, the account is permanently disabled. A one-time content-download link is sent to the email address on file for the account, valid for 30 days, allowing the account holder to export their uploaded content and account data.
5. Day 150 — Complete data purge. At day 150 the platform performs a complete purge of the account's content and personally identifying data, subject to the financial and ledger retention requirements described in our Privacy Policy.

No refund of subscription feespaid during the suspension period. The platform's standard pause-state policy does not apply to suspensions under this Section.

If the rights holder's claim is determined to be fraudulent or made in bad faith — including through a successful counter-notice or a determination by the platform — the account and its content will be restored promptly. The platform may also pursue remedies against the claiming party as permitted under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f) and other applicable law.

The Company respects copyright. If you believe content on the platform infringes a work you own or represent, see our DMCA Notices and Takedowns page for the takedown process. We process valid notices within 4 business days and follow a published repeat-infringer policy.

The Vinylaunch name, logo, and platform design are property of the Company. Use of the marks in promotional contexts requires written permission.

The platform is provided “as is” and “as available.” We work to keep the platform reliable but cannot guarantee uninterrupted availability. We do not warrant the accuracy of information provided by users — artist representations, service provider claims, fan reviews, etc.

The Company is not responsible for the offline conduct of users — including but not limited to artist–fan reward fulfillment, artist–vendor service delivery, and venue–artist tour-stop performance. Platform-mediated dispute support is available for good-faith disagreements but is not a substitute for direct resolution between the parties.

You choose the location. Vinylaunch does not restrict where a show is held — any location may be designated as a venue, including private residences and non-traditional spaces. Vinylaunch does not own, operate, inspect, vet, endorse, or insure venues, and is not a party to any arrangement between an organizer and a venue or property owner.

The organizer is responsible. If you create or host an event, you are solely responsible for: securing lawful authorization to use the location; complying with all applicable safety, fire, occupancy, permit, licensing, zoning, and accessibility requirements; obtaining appropriate insurance; and the safety and conduct of all attendees, performers, and workers at the event.

Assumption of risk.Attending or participating in any event listed or organized through the platform is at the participant's own risk. Vinylaunch makes no representation that any location is safe, lawful, or suitable for an event.

Indemnification. To the maximum extent permitted by law, each organizer agrees to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Vinylaunch and its owners, officers, and agents from and against any claims, demands, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses — including any arising from personal injury, death, or property damage — that arise out of or relate to an event, the selection or condition of a location, unsafe conditions, or any unauthorized use of a facility. Organizers accept this acknowledgement when they publish a show or tour.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Company’s aggregate liability to you for any claim arising out of these Terms or your use of the platform is limited to the greater of (a) the amounts you have paid to the Company in the twelve months preceding the claim, or (b) one hundred U.S. dollars.

The Company is not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, lost profits, or loss of data, even if advised of the possibility.

Vinylaunch LLC is a California limited liability company with its principal place of business in Sacramento, California. These Terms and any dispute arising out of them or your use of the platform are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles.

Before initiating any formal dispute, please contact info@vinylaunch.com to attempt informal resolution. Most disputes are resolved this way.

If informal resolution fails, you and the Company each agree that any claim arising out of these Terms or your use of the platform must be brought in a state or federal court located in Sacramento County, California, and you consent to the personal jurisdiction of those courts. If the claim qualifies under California law, it may instead be brought in California small claims court.

These Terms do not require mandatory arbitration. Either party retains the right to seek injunctive relief in court for actual or threatened infringement of intellectual property rights.

You can terminate your account at any time through your settings. We retain financial and ledger records as required by law (see Privacy Policy section 7).

We may suspend or terminate your account if you violate these Terms, if continued service is operationally or legally untenable, or if your account has been inactive for an extended period under the subscription-pause policy. We aim to provide notice where possible.

We may revise these Terms from time to time. When material changes happen we will notify active users by email and post a notice on the platform. The current effective date is at the top of this page. Continued use of the platform after a change takes effect constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

General: info@vinylaunch.com
Copyright / DMCA: dmca@vinylaunch.com