VYRALUNIVERSITY

Sound Exchange:
Online Registration

IN THIS ARTICLE...
A CHECKLIST TO PREPARE HOW TO REGISTER ONLINE
FOR REGISTRATION WITH SOUND EXCHANGE
We will take a look at We will walk-through
the things you will the entire online
need in order to registration process
complete your from start to finish
registration online. in detail.
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REGISTRATION TIPS &
POINTERS
We will go through the
different areas of the
registration process
that might seem
confusing or difficult
and help you naviagate
your way through.
 Vyral University: sound exchange: ONLINE REGISTRATION

It is time to

VYRAL MUSIC
get started
collecting your
royalties

Sound Exchange:
Online Registration

SO YOU ARE READY TO REGISTER WITH SOUND EXCHANGE...

We have put together an in-depth tutorial for the online registration process. You can follow this article while
registering to get step-by-step instructions for each section of the registration form.

Now that you have gone through the process of searching the Sound Exchange databases to look
for any uncollected royalties, it is time to go through the actual registration process. This process may
take you 15-20 minutes to complete, provided that you have all the information necessary to finish the
application. In order to save you time, we have included a checklist of the items and information you
will need in order to complete your online registration on the next page. Take the time to gather this
information beforehand so that you can sit down and complete your application in a timely and
accurate manner.

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GETTING STARTED

Now that you have a better understanding of the new laws regarding performance royalties, its
time to get started with the Sound Exchange system. Navigate to www.soundexchange.com and
scroll down to find this box:

Once you have located this box, click on the “How do I get paid?” button here to get started.

You will be taken to the Performer/SRCO Home page. Scroll down to locate this box. This is where
you will get started. There are two different options available to you, you can either find out if you any
royalties owed to you, or you can start the registration process.

We have already gone through how to search the Sound Exchange databases for unpaid royalties
so now it is time to register.

Locate this box and click on the button that says “I Want To Claim My Royalties” under the I’m A
Performer or SRCO section.

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
There are 2 ways that you can register with Sound Exchange. You can choose to register online or
you can download the proper forms and mail them in. We are going to concentrate on the Online
Registration method because it is the most convenient way to register.

There are two

different ways to
register:

1) Online

2) By Mail

There are 8 sections to the online registration form. We will go through each section in detail
starting on the next page so that you can register quickly and accurately. It is important to note that
we are writing this registration as if you were registering as a performer meaning this will only pertain
to the SRCO (artist/band, record label). Producers, Musicians, and others may have additional forms
to fill out to complete their registration process.

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
1) The First section you will fill out is the “Please Tell Us You Are” section of the online registration.

This image
designates a
required field.

Select the one that fits u best.

See Fig 1.

This section is for your contact

information.

If you are the contact for this

account, choose yes....

If Not.... SEE FIG 2.

FIGURE 1: FIGURE 2:

These are the different options available. If you are not the contact person, enter in
Most likely you would be a performer. the contact details of the person who is here.

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
1) continued...
Sound Exchange also provides a list of places you might have heard about Sound Exchange. Just
check any of the boxes that pertain to you, or use the “other” box to enter in a site not listed.

Check all boxes

that apply to you.

If yours is not
listed, type it in
here

You are now finished with the first section of the online application.

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 SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
2) The second section is the “Is This A New Registration Or An Update” section. since this tutorial is
dealing with first-time registration, we will concentrate on the New Registration option, which is
selected by default.

This is where you designate

the type of member you are
registering as.

Unless you have a record deal

or other contract, you are
most likely both the Artist &
Copyright Owner (Or Group)

Any other comments you would

like to make about the type
of registration can be typed
in here.
Check this box to certify
you are over the age of 13.

Typing in your name in this

instance is the equivalent
of a signature.
Note: the signature is
legally binding.

You are now finished with the second section of the online application.

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 SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
3) The third section of this form is the “Payee Information” section. This is where you enter in your
banking details so that you can receive your direct deposit royalty payments and electronic statements.

PART 1:

This is the name that

is associated with
your bank account.

Fill in the Name of

Your Bank here, along
with your account and
routing numbers.

This is where you designate

the email address where all
of your royalty statements
will be sent

If you cannot scan a check,

You are required to upload a then you can also fax one to
voided check for direct this number: 202-640-5859
depositing purposes.

Now on to Part 2 of this section....

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 SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
3) The third section of this form is the “Payee Information” section. This is where you enter in your
banking details so that you can receive your direct deposit royalty payments and electronic statements.

PART 2:

Here You
will enter
the
address
pertaining
to your
bank

If the name associated with

your bank account is
different than your Artist/
Band name, you must enter
in an explanation here.

If you cannot
scan, then you
Sound Exchange requires a form of can also fax one
identification. You can scan your to this number:
license, Passport or ID card and 202-640-5859
upload it here.

You must enter your SSN or

your Tax ID number here.

Note: if you are registering as a company, you can use the tax information as your identification

You are now finished with this section of the application....

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
4) Section four of this application is the “Tax Information” section. The IRS requires that you submit
tax information to Sound Exchange in order to process your registration. You cannot receive any
payments until you have sent Sound Exchange this information.

Use this link to download the W-9

form. This is the tax form you will
use if your are a US resident.

13
TLS, have you I.R.S. SPECIFICATIONS TO BE REMOVED BEFORE PRINTING
transmitted all R Action Date Signature
text files for this INSTRUCTIONS TO PRINTERS
cycle update? FORM W-9, PAGE 1 of 4
MARGINS: TOP 13mm (1⁄2 "), CENTER SIDES. PRINTS: HEAD to HEAD O.K. to print
PAPER: WHITE WRITING, SUB. 20. INK: BLACK
FLAT SIZE: 216mm (81⁄2 ") � 279mm (11")
Date PERFORATE: (NONE) Revised proofs
DO NOT PRINT — DO NOT PRINT — DO NOT PRINT — DO NOT PRINT requested

Once you have downloaded and filled

Form
(Rev. October 2007)
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service
See Specific Instructions on page 2.
out the form, scan it back into
your computer and then upload it
W-9 Request for Taxpayer Give form to the
requester. Do not here.
Identification Number and Certification send to the IRS.
Name (as shown on your income tax return)

Business name, if different from above

Check appropriate box: Individual/Sole proprietor Corporation Partnership

Print or type

Exempt
Limited liability company. Enter the tax classification (D=disregarded entity, C=corporation, P=partnership) ©
payee
Other (see instructions) ©

Address (number, street, and apt. or suite no.) Requester’s name and address (optional)

City, state, and ZIP code This is the W-9 form, which is also known as
an independent contractors form, is used for
List account number(s) here (optional)

Part I Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)

people who are self-employed. For help with

Enter your TIN in the appropriate box. The TIN provided must match the name given on Line 1 to avoid Social security number
backup withholding. For individuals, this is your social security number (SSN). However, for a resident
alien, sole proprietor, or disregarded entity, see the Part I instructions on page 3. For other entities, it is
your employer identification number (EIN). If you do not have a number, see How to get a TIN on page 3. or

this form, you can navigate to our Legal &

Note. If the account is in more than one name, see the chart on page 4 for guidelines on whose Employer identification number
number to enter.
Part II Certification
Under penalties of perjury, I certify that:
1. The number shown on this form is my correct taxpayer identification number (or I am waiting for a number to be issued to me), and
2. I am not subject to backup withholding because: (a) I am exempt from backup withholding, or (b) I have not been notified by the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) that I am subject to backup withholding as a result of a failure to report all interest or dividends, or (c) the IRS has
Business section. We have an entire article on
notified me that I am no longer subject to backup withholding, and
3. I am a U.S. citizen or other U.S. person (defined below).
Certification instructions. You must cross out item 2 above if you have been notified by the IRS that you are currently subject to backup
withholding because you have failed to report all interest and dividends on your tax return. For real estate transactions, item 2 does not apply.
Taxes!
For mortgage interest paid, acquisition or abandonment of secured property, cancellation of debt, contributions to an individual retirement
arrangement (IRA), and generally, payments other than interest and dividends, you are not required to sign the Certification, but you must
provide your correct TIN. See the instructions on page 4.

Sign Signature of
Here U.S. person © Date ©

General Instructions Definition of a U.S. person. For federal tax purposes, you are
considered a U.S. person if you are:
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless
otherwise noted. c An individual who is a U.S. citizen or U.S. resident alien,
c A partnership, corporation, company, or association created or
Purpose of Form organized in the United States or under the laws of the United
A person who is required to file an information return with the States,
IRS must obtain your correct taxpayer identification number (TIN) c An estate (other than a foreign estate), or
to report, for example, income paid to you, real estate c A domestic trust (as defined in Regulations section
transactions, mortgage interest you paid, acquisition or 301.7701-7).
abandonment of secured property, cancellation of debt, or
Special rules for partnerships. Partnerships that conduct a
contributions you made to an IRA.
trade or business in the United States are generally required to
Use Form W-9 only if you are a U.S. person (including a pay a withholding tax on any foreign partners’ share of income

You are now done with this section....

resident alien), to provide your correct TIN to the person
requesting it (the requester) and, when applicable, to:
1. Certify that the TIN you are giving is correct (or you are
waiting for a number to be issued),
2. Certify that you are not subject to backup withholding, or
3. Claim exemption from backup withholding if you are a U.S.
exempt payee. If applicable, you are also certifying that as a
U.S. person, your allocable share of any partnership income from
a U.S. trade or business is not subject to the withholding tax on
foreign partners’ share of effectively connected income.
Note. If a requester gives you a form other than Form W-9 to
request your TIN, you must use the requester’s form if it is
substantially similar to this Form W-9.
Cat. No. 10231X
from such business. Further, in certain cases where a Form W-9
has not been received, a partnership is required to presume that
a partner is a foreign person, and pay the withholding tax.
Therefore, if you are a U.S. person that is a partner in a
partnership conducting a trade or business in the United States,
provide Form W-9 to the partnership to establish your U.S.
status and avoid withholding on your share of partnership
income.
The person who gives Form W-9 to the partnership for
purposes of establishing its U.S. status and avoiding withholding
on its allocable share of net income from the partnership
conducting a trade or business in the United States is in the
following cases:
c The U.S. owner of a disregarded entity and not the entity,
Form W-9 (Rev. 10-2007)

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
5) Section five of this application is the “Non-US Affiliations” section. This section is for international
registrants only. If you are a US Registrant, you do not need to fill out this section, as it does not apply
to you.

You are now done with this section

Remember the part of “Is This A New Registration Or An Update” where you were asked to tell Sound
Exchange what type of registration this was.....

....well part 6 of this online registration form will depend on what you selected. There are actually
FOUR different “section 6’s” depending on what you pick. Let’s go through the different sections next.

TO NAVIGATE TO THE SECTION THAT APPLIES TO YOUR APPLICATION USE THESE LINKS:

SOLO ARTIST GROUP GROUP MEMBER COPYRIGHT OWNER

note: you may be required to fill out more than one of these sections depending on your selection...

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
6) SOLO ARTIST:
This is the section six that will show up if you have selected “Solo Artist” for the type of registration as
explained above.

PART 1:

This is the name you go by when performing.

This is where
you enter your
LEGAL NAME.

Enter Your Date Select your

of birth using gender here.
the MM/DD/YYYY
Format here.

This is the country

where you were born.

Choose your
This is the country country of
where you live. citizenship
from the drop-
If you are a Non US registrant, down list.
enter your Province here.

You can use this box to enter in your catalog,

(although i will recommend that you gather
this information on a spreadsheet, which you
will be able to upload at the end of this
form).

Use this box to list any other names by which

you might have been credited on a release.
This will help Sound Exchange locate ALL of
your royalties.

this section is continued on the next page....

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
6) SOLO ARTIST CONTINUED...

PART 2: This is where you can upload the spreadsheet

i was referring to earlier.

If you have also performed with a

group you will be required to fill out
the “Group Member” section as well.
Clicking “Yes” will automatically show
the section below.

If you wish to see the “Group Member”

section tutorial, Click Here to
navigate to that page in this article.

Here is an example of an “Artist Repertoire” spreadsheet.

ARTIST SONG TITLE ALBUM TITLE

Your Name Song 1 Album One

Your Name Song 2 Album One

Your Name Song 3 Album One

This is a basic repertoire list, as you will be registering your works in more detail later.....

CLICK HERE
You may now click here to move onto the next section, as the next few pages
deal with the other “section 6’s” which do not apply to your application.

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
6) Group:
This is the section six that will show up if you have selected “Group” for the type of registration as
explained above. Also if you have selected “Group And Copyright Owner” you will be required to
complete this section.

PART 1:

This is the name you go by when performing.

Put the names of all

the albums you
performed on here.

List any other names your group

has performed under here. (This
is used to help Sound Exchange
located your royalties).

You can use this box to enter in your catalog,

(although i will recommend that you gather
this information on a spreadsheet)

If you choose to use a spreadsheet,

(recommended) you can upload it here.

this section is continued on the next page....

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
6) GROUP MEMBER Continued...

PART 1:

This lets sound exchange know how you

divide your royalties. Choose one.

Enter in the
Name, Phone
Number & Email
of each Group
Member here.

CLICK HERE
You may now click here to move onto the next section, as the next few pages
deal with the other “section 6’s” which do not apply to your application.

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
6) Group Member:
This is the section six that will show up if you have selected “Group Member” for the type of
registration as explained above. Also if you have selected “Group Member And Copyright Owner” you
will be required to complete this section.

This is the name you go by when performing.

Type in your percentage of the royalties as

designated by your contract with the group.

This lets sound exchange know how you

divide your royalties. Choose one.

You can use this box to enter in your catalog,

(although i will recommend that you gather
this information on a spreadsheet)

If you choose to use a spreadsheet,

(recommended) you can upload it here.

If you are a member of more than one group,

check yes to open up a second “Group Member”
section. You are required to fill out a
section for each group.

CLICK HERE
You may now click here to move onto the next section, as the next few pages
deal with the other “section 6’s” which do not apply to your application.

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
6) Group Member:
This is the section six that will show up if you have selected “Copyright Owner/Label” for the type of
registration as explained above. Also if you have selected any combination of Artist, Group or Group
Member & Copyright Owner, you will be required to fill out this section.

This is the name the SR

Copyrights are registered under.

You can use this box to

enter in your catalog,
(although i will
recommend that you
gather this information
on a spreadsheet) List all Record Labels
associated with your SR
copyrights.

If you choose to use a spreadsheet,

(recommended) you can upload it here.

If you share these copyrights, you will be required

to enter in more information... SEE FIGURE 1 below.

Type in your percentage of the royalties as designated

by your contract with other copyright owner(s).

This lets sound exchange know how you

divide your royalties with the other
copyright owner(s).. Choose one.

FIGURE 1:

Enter the Name,

Phone Number, and
Email of each
Copyright owner
that you share
your rights with.

CLICK HERE
You may now click here to move onto the next section, as the next few pages
deal with the other “section 6’s” which do not apply to your application.

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SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION
7) Section seven of this application is the “SoundExchange Membership” section. This section deals
with the Membership Agreements. Read through the agreements shown, and then sign by typing your
name to complete this section.

This is the signature that signifies that you are wishing

to join sound exchange as a Copyright Owner Member.

This is the signature that signifies that you are wishing

to join sound exchange as a Featured Artist Member.

These signatures are actual electronic signatures showing that you have read the Agreements
pertaining to your registration and that you understand them and agree. The reason you have to sign
two times is that, in this example, i have shown a registration for an “Artist & Copyright Holder”.
Becoming a member is important because it allows you to register your titles with Sound Exchange in
a more exact manner (kind of like ASCAP, BMI, & SESAC).

AND IT IS FREE TO JOIN OF COURSE!!!

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 SOUND EXCHANGE: ONLINE REGISTRATION

7) Section eight of this application is the “Authorization & Submission” section. This section is the
final section of the online registration form. You will agree to the privacy policy and sign your online
registration form here.

Once you have read and understand the

privacy policy, click the box to agree.

This section
explains Sound
Exchange’s
Policies and
Procedures.

If you know anyone else that you wish to inform about Sound Exchange,
you can click yes to enter their contact info. SEE FIGURE 1 BELOW.

Type in your signature to authorize this form.

Create a password that will allow

you to modify your account.

Take a second to go back and look through the entire

from, and then click “Submit” to send your application.

FIGURE 1:

If you clicked yes above, you can

enter the email address(s) or phone
number(s) of anyone you know that
you want Sound Exchange to contact.

THIS COMPLETES YOUR ONLINE REGISTRATION WITH SOUND EXCHANGE.

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