Podcast Guest Release

If you’re a podcaster, did you know your guests have copyright rights in their episodes? 😬

Whenever anyone creates original content in something, whether it be a song, a blog post, a social media post, or even a podcast interview, they have copyright rights in it. What does this mean? Copyright rights give them the right to dictate who can use their work as well as how it is used, so a podcast guest has copyright rights in episodes they appear in, plus rights in how and where their promotional photos are used.

When a guest signs this Podcast Release, they’re agreeing to release their copyright rights in their episode, which gives you sole authority to decide how your podcast episode is edited, distributed, and monetized. It also allows you to use the guest’s photo, voice, and intellectual property (the content of their interview) without seeking their permission each time, on whatever platforms you like. It will also level set their expectations around compensation and royalties so if/when 😉 your podcast blows up and you get advertisers and sponsors, they know that they can’t come back and demand compensation in order for you to continue to use their episode.

Without a podcast release, your guests can:

😬 demand you edit their episodes in a certain way or, after the fact, claim you edited them inappropriately and demand you remove their episode

😬 demand you remove their episodes because they don’t agree with your opinions or stance on an issue

😬 revoke permission to use their name, photo, or a promo recording of the episode

Think this is unlikely? Recently, a podcast guest demanded an episode he appeared on be taken down. When the podcaster didn’t relent, the guest sued for copyright infringement, invasion of privacy, and more. A proper Podcast Release would have negated all of these issues.

Protect yourself and your podcast with this Release!

Do you have a podcast? Thinking about starting one? Then yes, this is for you. Any time you have a guest on your podcast, they have copyright rights in their content. Protect yourself and your podcast with this Release!