What Are ISRC and ISWC Codes?

I’ve talked about how ASCAP and BMI pay publishing royalties when a composition is publically performed.  And that Sound Exchange is the organization that pays a digital performance royalty when a sound recording is played on internet or satellite radio.  But, how do these organizations know when a song (composition and sound recording) has been played.  Traditionally it was done by surveying and referring to music industry charts.  But now technology is playing a big role.

            When a song is played on the internet, satellite radio, and even traditional radio, that play is tracked by reference to a digitally encoded number in the metadata of the song.  That is, a unique number that is given to a song, that is not seen or heard, but within the digital coding, and that can be identified and referneced electronically.

            The digital reference systems becoming common in music are the ISRC and ISWC numbers.

            ISRC means international standard recording code.  ISRC numbers identify sound recordings.  ISRC numbers allow radio stations and digital broadcasters to automatically credit a label or publisher with a play and download sales sites to track sells.  An ISRC number can be thought of as being an electronically encoded bar code.  You can get more information at www.usisrc.org.

            ISWC means international standard music work code.  ISWC numbers identify musical works – the composition or underlying song.  ISWC numbers are a unique and permanent reference number for the identification of musical works.  ISWC numbers are used by to identify when a composition has been publically perofmed.  For more information see www.iswc.org.

            Use of ISRC and ISWC numbers is growing in importance.  Songs without ISRC or ISWC numbers are much less likely to be credited for being played.  Labels and artists should ensure that all versions of their sound recordings are properly coded.  ISRC and ISWC coding is supported by most mastering software.