Commercial music licensing for venues
How Ambsonic's music is licensed, what your subscription covers, and what stays your responsibility — in plain language.
Music licensing is where background-music services tend to get vague. This page explains exactly how our model works, what we promise, and where local rules still matter.
The short version
- Every paid Ambsonic plan includes a commercial license to play our catalog as background music in your venue.
- Our catalog is 100% original. It contains no tracks from record labels, no third-party songwriters or publishers, and no works registered with any collecting society (ASCAP, BMI, GEMA, PRS, EAÜ, or any other PRO or CMO).
- Because of that, playing the Ambsonic catalog does not generate the composer and publisher royalties that collecting societies collect. Country-specific notes are below.
- We issue written, venue-specific license confirmation on request.
- This page is general information, not legal advice.
How our music is made
We are open about this, because you deserve to know what plays in your space: Ambsonic's music is AI-assisted and human-curated. Our team creates the tracks in-house using licensed AI music-production tools under paid commercial-use subscriptions, then reviews, selects, edits, and masters every track before it enters a mood playlist. Nothing in the catalog comes from a record label or a third-party songwriter.
This matters for licensing in two ways. First, there is no chain of outside rights holders: to the fullest extent that copyright and related rights subsist in these recordings and compositions, they are owned or controlled by Ambsonic. Second, none of the music is registered with any collecting society, so no PRO repertoire is involved when you play it.
Copyright law for AI-assisted works is still developing around the world. Our model does not depend on it: your right to play the music comes from a direct contractual license between Ambsonic and your business, set out in our Terms of Service.
What your subscription covers
Your subscription licenses you to play tracks from the Ambsonic catalog, through the Ambsonic service, as ambient background music inside the venue premises covered by your plan — for your guests, customers, and staff, for as long as your subscription is active. Unless your plan says otherwise, a subscription covers one venue and one active playback device at a time.
It does not cover:
- transmitting or streaming the music beyond your venue premises, including online
- events where admission is charged for the music itself, such as concerts or club nights
- synchronizing tracks with video, advertising, or other produced content
- downloading, extracting, copying, distributing, or reselling tracks
- karaoke or performance uses
What stays your responsibility
- Other music sources. Radio, TV audio, consumer streaming apps, DJs, and live music are not covered by Ambsonic. Normal local licensing obligations continue to apply to those sources.
- Local reporting duties. A few countries expect venues to report public music use even when the music is outside every society's repertoire (see Germany below). Our documentation is designed to make that step easy.
- Mandatory statutory fees. In rare cases, local law assigns certain fees on a mandatory basis regardless of repertoire, such as some equipment levies. A private license cannot switch those off — in any service, including ours.
Country notes
United States
ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, and GMR license their own repertoires. The Ambsonic catalog is not in any of them, so playing only Ambsonic does not require those licenses. If your venue also plays radio, TV, or consumer apps, standard PRO obligations apply to that other music.
Germany
German practice works with the GEMA presumption (GEMA-Vermutung): GEMA may assume that publicly played music belongs to its repertoire until shown otherwise, and venues are expected to report public music use even when the music is GEMA-free. Playing Ambsonic does not create GEMA royalties, but the reporting step and the burden of proof sit with the venue. That is exactly what our written confirmation is for — and if GEMA contacts you, we will help you respond. Auf Deutsch: GEMA-freie Hintergrundmusik von Ambsonic.
France
SACEM licenses author rights for public diffusion, and background music normally also carries the statutory "rémunération équitable" (SPRE) for performers and producers, collected alongside SACEM's fees. The Ambsonic catalog is outside those repertoires, so playing it does not generate either charge; if SACEM contacts you, respond with our written confirmation and involve us. En français: musique sans SACEM par Ambsonic.
Spain
Venue music in Spain normally involves three entities: SGAE (authors), AGEDI (producers), and AIE (performers), often billed jointly for hospitality. The Ambsonic catalog is outside all three repertoires, so playing it does not generate those charges; if any of them contacts you, respond with our written confirmation and involve us. En español: música sin SGAE de Ambsonic.
Italy
Italian venues normally deal with SIAE (authors, "musica d'ambiente" licensing) and the separate phonogram remuneration collected by SCF, and Italy also has independent author entities (Soundreef, LEA) whose repertoires need their own licenses — so "SIAE-free" alone is not the whole story. The Ambsonic catalog is outside all of those repertoires; if any of them contacts you, respond with our written confirmation and involve us. In italiano: musica senza SIAE di Ambsonic.
Poland
Polish venues normally sign two contracts: ZAiKS for authors’ rights and STOART, which since 2016 is the single collector for all related rights (performers and producers) — hotels are the exception and still deal with all four societies. Poland also applies a rebuttable presumption (art. 5 of the 2018 collective-management act) that puts the burden of proof on the venue, so documentation matters. The Ambsonic catalog is outside every society’s repertoire, so playing it generates none of those fees; if a society or its inspector contacts you, respond with our written confirmation and involve us. Po polsku: muzyka bez ZAiKS-u od Ambsonic.
United Kingdom
PRS for Music and PPL license their members' works and recordings through TheMusicLicence. The Ambsonic catalog is outside both repertoires, so it does not trigger those fees. Any other music you play remains licensable as usual.
Estonia and the wider EU
The same logic applies with local societies across the EU — in Estonia, EAÜ. Playing only the Ambsonic catalog does not generate society royalties. If a society enquires, use our written confirmation and involve us.
Written proof for your venue
On request, we issue a venue-specific license confirmation: a document naming your business and venue address, your subscription period, and confirming that the Ambsonic catalog contains no works administered by any collecting society. Keep it with your business documents — it is designed to answer a collecting-society enquiry in one step. Ask for it through our Contact page or the support chat.
If a collecting society contacts you
- Don't panic. Enquiries are routine, and playing music in your venue is not an admission of anything.
- Reply that your venue plays only the Ambsonic catalog, which contains no works administered by any collecting society, and attach your license confirmation.
- Forward the enquiry to us. We will provide additional documentation and help you draft a response for your market.
Questions to ask any background music vendor
Hold every vendor — including us — to the same standard. The answers for Ambsonic are on this page and in our Terms of Service.
- Where does the music come from, and who holds the rights?
- Is any of the catalog registered with a collecting society?
- What exactly does the subscription license cover, and what is excluded?
- What remains the venue operator's responsibility locally?
- Can the vendor provide written, venue-specific confirmation for procurement or a society enquiry?
Not legal advice
This page is general information for venue operators, not legal advice. Music rights rules vary by country, venue type, and playback setup. If you need a legal conclusion for your market, ask a qualified adviser or your local rights organization — and feel free to show them this page and our written confirmation.
Need something specific?
If you need venue-specific licensing clarification, procurement support, or written information for your market, use our Contact page or write to Ambsonic OÜ (registry code 17475316), Kompanii 2, Tartu, Estonia, 51007.