Receiving the file does not give you the right to do anything with it. Organic and advertising, duration, territory, exclusivity, and the clause to write.
What a licence covers
Receiving a file gives you a file. What you are allowed to do with it depends on a separate agreement: the licence. It describes a permitted use, not a transfer of ownership, and anything not in it is not covered.
The six parameters of a licence
Six elements, to write separately.
The type of use, organic or advertising.
The duration, with an end date.
The territory.
The permitted media.
The right to modify.
And exclusivity, if requested.
Organic and advertising, the difference that counts
A post on the brand's account and a placement pushed with a budget have neither the same reach nor the same value. An agreement mentioning only organic does not cover paid advertising, even if the video is identical. It is the single most frequent source of dispute in the whole sector.
Why advertising costs more
Six concrete reasons.
Exposure is multiplied by the budget.
The video can be seen by an audience not originally agreed to.
The creator loses the ability to work for a competitor.
The creative generates direct revenue for the brand.
The distribution period is often longer.
And the content is modified, cropped, declined.
The most common durations
Six duration formats.
Three months, for a test.
Six months, for a season.
Twelve months, for an annual campaign.
A duration tied to one specific launch.
A tacit renewal, to avoid without a written price.
And an unlimited duration, invoiced as an assignment.
What the territory changes
Six markers.
One country, for a local brand.
One language zone, for a regional campaign.
One continent, for an expansion.
The whole world, which multiplies the value.
An explicit exclusion of certain countries.
And a possible extension, priced in advance.
Exclusivity and running from the creator's account
Two notions often confused. Exclusivity guarantees that the creator will not work for a defined competitor, for a defined period. Running from their account is something else: you are paying to use their identity as the sender of the ad. Both are invoiced separately, and neither is included by default.
What a simple clause must contain
Seven lines, not one more.
The names of both parties.
A description of the content concerned.
The type of use permitted.
The duration, with start and end dates.
The territory.
Whether modification is allowed.
And the price matching those conditions.
How to price the rights
Seven principles.
Start from the production price as the base.
Add a percentage per duration bracket.
Add a percentage per additional territory.
Invoice advertising use separately.
Invoice running from the creator's account separately.
Price exclusivity, always.
And write the renewal price into the first quote.
What modifying a video means
Six operations to authorise explicitly.
Cropping to another format.
Shortening or re-editing.
Adding subtitles.
Adding a voice-over or a dub.
Changing the music.
And overlaying a logo or a price.
The most frequent mistakes
Seven situations that come back endlessly.
Boosting a video with organic rights only.
Specifying no duration at all.
Letting a licence expire under live ads.
Confusing exclusivity with running from the creator's account.
Believing that paying transfers ownership.
Negotiating the rights after delivery.
And extending to a new country with no amendment.
What paying does not give you
Six limits to know.
You are not the author of the content.
You cannot resell it.
You cannot register it as a trademark.
You cannot use it outside the agreed media.
You cannot modify it unless it is written down.
And you cannot run it after the end date.
What the creator can still do
Six rights that remain theirs, unless stated otherwise.
Publish the video on their own profile.
Use it in their portfolio.
Show it to other brands as an example.
Refuse a modification that distorts their point.
Ask for removal if a clause is breached.
And work for another brand, outside any exclusivity.
How to manage expiries
Seven steps.
Note every end date in a register.
Set a reminder three weeks before.
Check whether the creative is still running.
Look at its recent performance.
Decide between renewing, replacing or stopping.
Negotiate before expiry.
And pull the creative if no agreement is reached.
What a renewal costs
Six negotiating markers.
A percentage of the initial production price.
An identical or shorter duration.
An unchanged territory.
A sliding rate if several videos are renewed.
A price known in advance, written into the original quote.
And an answer within a week.
What to do if a licence expired unnoticed
Six actions, in order.
Stop the distribution immediately.
Document the period concerned.
Tell the creator before they find out.
Offer a priced regularisation.
Sign a new dated agreement.
And correct the register for the other videos.
How to write an amendment
Six lines are enough.
Recall the initial agreement and its date.
Describe only what changes.
State the new duration or the new territory.
Write the matching price.
Date it and have it accepted in writing.
And attach the amendment to the original file.
The questions to ask the creator
Seven questions, before ordering.
Do you accept advertising use.
Over what maximum duration.
In which territories.
Do you accept a modification of the edit.
Do you accept running from your account.
What is your renewal price.
And do you already work for a competitor.
What to put in the register
Seven columns.
The file name.
The creator and their contact.
The delivery date.
The licence end date.
The territories.
The permitted uses.
And the link to the written agreement.
Special cases to handle separately
Six situations needing their own line.
The music used in the video.
The presence of another person on screen.
A private location filmed.
A third-party brand visible.
A dub into another language.
And reuse on television or in store.
What to keep
Six documents, in the same place.
The signed or accepted agreement.
The matching quote.
The delivery date.
The written exchanges about rights.
The invoice.
And the end date, carried into a calendar.
What a licence defines, point by point
| The variable | What it bounds | The common minimum |
|---|---|---|
| The media | Where the video may run | The creator's account |
| The territory | In which countries | One only |
| The term | Until when | Three months |
| Exclusivity | Who else may be filmed | No restriction |
What separates a licence from an assignment
A licence authorises a bounded use, an assignment transfers the right itself. The difference is read in the contract's vocabulary, and it completely changes the value of the work.
What is reread before signing
Automatic renewal and sub-licensing to third parties. Two discreet lines that turn a three-month licence into a permanent authorisation, to be confirmed with a lawyer.
How a marketplace frames it from the start
On UGC MATCH, joining is free and there is no subscription: the accepted terms, the brief and the delivery stay attached to the order, which avoids reconstructing an agreement after the fact. The brand pays at ordering, the funds are not released straight away, and payment goes out on approval. The platform retains 10% of the price on the creator side, who therefore keeps 90%, and charges the brand a 6% service fee, with a minimum of 1.50 EUR.
One last marker: a licence reads in thirty seconds. If yours takes longer, it was written to be misunderstood.
