Turmic Records Referral Agreement
Turmic Records (TR) is a non-exclusive worldwide digital distributor for independent artists and small labels. Our main objective is to distribute as many artists/groups as possible that have reached the level of quality in their music and recording that insures at least a minimum amount of sales to justify their costs and ours. We welcome shooting stars, but they are not our focus. We cast a wide net rather than focusing on big hit-makers. In so doing we do not consider ourselves gatekeepers, but rather as a provider both for the artist/group that understands the value of our service and for their purchasers of digital downloads who seek new fresh music that might otherwise not reach them. We help artists/groups get their music out to millions of legal download consumers on the net. We charge for this service because even if we have streamlined the process of encoding, registering and sending their music to over 100 download sites, it is still a tedious and time consuming job. We are tired of a handful of A&R's making decisions about what's good and bad for the general public, and the radio stations are even worse. It's time that the individual artist received a fair chance. Naturally we can't promote all the bands we have all the time. BUT if things start to happen for them, then they have someone to contact. Try doing that directly with iTunes or MSN or any of the large sites we deliver to. So even if we can't guarantee a blinking banner on the front page of iTunes, the artist/group will have at least someone to get a hold of when it's time to push their hit single. The artists/groups are still responsible for marketing their act. It is not the job of a distributor to create demand for their product.
What
TR offers to our artists/groups:
Non-exclusive digital distribution agreement - worldwide
Digital royalties (downloads, streams, album pricing, subscriptions, etc.)
Marketing team in place with close relationships with the music programmers
Deals in place with all the largest digital download services i.e. iTunes, Napster,
AOL, Virgin, MSN, etc.
Cost effectiveness for artists/groups to outsource this aspect of the business.
Royalty
Splits
Artists/groups are offered three possible royalty splits depending on their
level and needs.
At the time of this agreement, the following agreements are typically available:
• 70/30 split in the artist’s favor (standard)
• 60/40 split in the artist’s favor with a 30% discount on the first
master fee.*
• 50/50 split with a 50% or higher discount on the first master fee.*
Those artists/groups who receive a 60/40 deal offer may also accept the 70/30
offer
Thos artists/groups who receive a 50/50 deal offer may also accept the 60/40
or the 70/30 offer.
*Artists who we have 60/40 and 50/50 deals with are given preferential treatment
regarding marketing and discounts on other Turmic Records and Stellar Artist
Management products such as placement on compilations, shopping deals, mail-order
distribution, physical distribution, representation at music conferences, etc.
As
a Turmic Records Referral Company, the undersigned understands and agrees with
the following terms and conditions:
Object:
The object of a Turmic Records Referral Company is to refer as many artists
as possible to TR. TR prefers to license the highest quality music possible,
but as an aggregator, a Referral Company's main focus is to find as many artists/groups
as possible and encourage them to license their music to TR. Turmic Records’
Head of A&R will have the final decision as to whether a band is signed
or not.
Types of referrals:
A Referral Company may refer and artist/group in any number of ways: link to
our site, passive conversation, pro-active marketing, advertising in programs,
etc.
Acting
Responsibly and Certifications:
Referral Company agrees to act responsibly and to not defame or otherwise malign
TR or its clientele.
Referral Company agrees not to misinform or pass false information to his/her
clientele.
Referral Company agrees to maintain cordial and positive relations with TR especially
regarding e-mail correspondences.
Referral Company agrees to ask TR if he/she is uncertain to the answer of a
client's questions rather than making up an answer.
Termination:
TR regards the following as a Referral Company’s own act of termination:
Failure to abide by the rules of this agreement.
Failure to respond to TR’s e-mails within three (3) business days.
Payment:
Both the Referral Company and the artist/group benefit from this agreement creating
a win/win situation. Since the artist/group will receive a better deal by going
through a Referral Company, there is greater likelihood that the artist/group
will contact TR via your link rather than going directly to TR. Regarding links
to TR’s site, TR will provide Referral Company with the html script in
order to insure that you are correctly credited for each of your referrals.
For
the Referral Company:
For each artist/group Referral Company refers to us, and whose music TR licenses,
TR will pay Referral Company according to the following rate schedule:
1-50 new artists/groups licensed in a calendar quarter (90 days): US$10.00 per
artist/group
51-100 new artists/groups licensed in a calendar quarter (90 days): US$12.50
per artist/group
101- or more new artists/groups licensed in a calendar quarter (90 days): US$15.00
per artist/group
A signed artist/group is one that TR has received a signed contract and payment
for.
For
the artist/group:
Artists/groups who normally do not receive a discount on 70/30 offers will receive
a $5 discount on the first master fee.
Artists/groups who normally receive a 30% discount on 60/40 offers will receive
a $10 discount on the first master fee.
Artists/groups who normally receive a 50% discount on 50/50 offers will receive
a $15 discount on the first master fee.
TR decides what offer an artist receives based on its own criteria.
Billing period is monthly. A Referral Company must earn a minimum of US$100
in order for a check to be issued. Any outstanding balances less than US$100
will be added to the next billing period. If the agreement is terminated by
Turmic Records, Referral Company’s balance will be paid out in full as
long as the Referral Company has not violated the terms of this agreement. If,
however, Referral Company terminates the agreement within the first six months,
Referral Company’s balance will be reverted to TR. Referral Companies
are responsible for all bank charges or wiring fees. At the time of this agreement,
all payments are made through Pay Pal.
Indemnity:
Referral Company is not an employee of Turmic Records, but is a free agent.
Referral Company agrees to indemnify and hold Turmic Records, and all of its
officers, directors, owners, employees, agents, information providers, affiliates,
partners and licensors (collectively, “Turmic Records”) harmless
from and against any and all claims, demands, losses, damages, liabilities,
costs, and expenses, including legal fees, arising out of or by reason of any
breach or alleged breach by me of any of the representations, warranties, or
agreements made under this contact.
Each party acknowledges that no representations of any kind, other than the
representations set forth in this Agreement, have been made to it as an inducement
to enter into this Agreement and that this Agreement constitutes all of the
terms of the Agreement hereby entered into by and between the parties.
Either party may terminate this agreement at any time without any prior notice.
If TR terminates the agreement, Referral Company will be remunerated for any
outstanding balances from their signing of newly signed artists/groups. Any
Referral Company that does not sign an artist/group to TR during a six-month
period is automatically terminated.
Each party agrees to pay its own taxes from any income earned.
Undersigned confirms that he/she has the legal right to enter into this agreement.
________________________________________
Name of Referral Company
________________________________________ ______________
Referral Company's contact Signature & Date
________________________________________
Referral Company's contact name clearly printed
________________________________________ ______________
Michael Hoffman Date
For Turmic Records
![]()