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What is an ISRC code

   Your recording’s unique ID

An ISRC code (International Standard Recording Code) is an international standard code for uniquely identifying sound recordings – and it is an absolute essential, and not only in the digital world. It is your recording’s digital fingerprint or personal ID number. Without it, nobody could correctly calculate your royalties from digital distribution, from public performance of recordings or from radio play.

   What does it look like and what does it mean?

It is always a 12-character alphanumeric code. Each part has its own meaning.

Example:

CZ-A12-24-00001
CZ
Country code
The country where the producer is based (here the Czech Republic).
A12
Registrant code
A unique producer code assigned by the national agency (Intergram in the Czech Republic).
24
Year of reference
The year the ISRC was assigned (usually the year the recording was released).
00001
Designation code
The sequential number of the recording in that year.

   When does the ISRC change and when does it stay the same?

This is a common mistake. An ISRC is tied to a specific sound recording. So if 30 artists record 30 versions of the same song, there will have to be 30 different ISRC codes.

   The same ISRC stays

If you take the same WAV file and put it in different places, e.g.:

   It is still the same recording = the same code. Thanks to this, the streams from all these releases add up together for one recording! You will see this in the Track value statistic too.

   You need a new ISRC

If you change the recording in any way:

  • radio edit (shorter version),
  • remix,
  • remaster,
  • live version from a concert,
  • acoustic version.

   How do I get one?

You have two options, and we support both:

1

   You have your own code from Intergram

You are a pro, you have registered with Intergram as a producer of sound recordings and have been assigned your own identifier (e.g. “XY1”).

When uploading music to our system, you generate the ISRC yourself and enter it in the Track ISRC Code field of the recording form (with or without hyphens). The form checks the code format straight away.

You are then officially listed as the producer everywhere.

   Note:

You do not have to register yourself – your producer can provide you with the code. You can find out more in the article Who is the producer of a sound recording.

2

   You do not have your own code (most common)

You do not want to deal with paperwork with Intergram.

In that case, Bez Labelu assigns the ISRC automatically and free of charge – simply leave the ISRC field in the recording form empty.

   What does this mean legally?

Under our Framework (sub)licence agreement on digital distribution, we become the “producer” for the purposes of registration with collecting societies. This allows us to report the recording correctly and make sure your royalties are paid out. It saves you paperwork.

   Re-releasing a recording

If you are releasing the same recording again (e.g. when switching distributors or when including a recording from a previously released single on an album), you must use the recording’s original ISRC.

The same applies to the other metadata – title, authors, producers and the WAV file itself – all of this must stay identical. Enter the original ISRC in the ISRC field of the recording form – an empty field would mean a new code, and therefore a new recording. Note: Once the release has been submitted for distribution for the first time, the ISRC can no longer be changed. You will find the procedure in the article Re-releasing a recording on another release.

   Do not confuse ISRC with ISWC!

An ISRC identifies a specific recording (sound recording). An ISWC identifies a song (the musical work as such). You can find out more in the article What is an ISWC code?.