Bandcamp has long been a favorite for independent artists looking to sell directly to fans, but its latest update aims to solve a more complex piece of the puzzle: publishing rights.
New Metadata Fields for Publishing Rights
For the first time, Bandcamp is adding dedicated publishing rights fields to its track and album upload pages. These tools are aimed at simplifying the often-convoluted process of attribution, especially for tracks involving multiple collaborators.
Artists and labels can now input:
- Songwriter/Composer Names: Specific credits for the individuals who wrote the underlying composition.
- Publisher Name: Information for artists signed to a music publisher or a publishing administrator.
- ISWC Identifiers: The International Standard Musical Work Code (ISWC) can now be attached directly to the track metadata, providing a "digital fingerprint" for the composition that is recognized globally by collection societies.
How to Update Your Bandcamp Catalog
For artists with existing catalogs, Bandcamp suggests using their bulk-edit tools to retroactively add publishing info. The platform has also released a free Essential Guide to Publishing Rights and Royalties to help users navigate the technical side of ISWCs and collection societies.
Hypebot's Bottom Line
Missing metadata can lead to "black box" royalties - money earned but never paid because the rights holder couldn't be identified.
By integrating these fields at the point of upload, Bandcamp is helping independent creators bridge the gap between a direct sale on their platform and the broader publishing ecosystem.
This move follows Bandcamp’s recent efforts to maintain "human-centric" platform standards, including its strictly enforced policy against generative AI music and the return of Bandcamp Fridays for 2026.
