LIR v.1.1.4 Documentation

This platform was made by a musician who sat in a basement for 24 years beside the furnace writing songs before crawling out to replace the entire music industry with something a little more to his liking. Here it is — please enjoy it. It's free for all to use.

(now also replaces film distribution, theater systems, and food delivery systems)

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Account Overview

All account types are free, and all account features are free to use. Fans pay only when they purchase tickets or advertising on the platform.

Every type of media—including audio, livestream archives, films, and videos—earns the same amount per second streamed each month through our Rights Receiver Payment System (RRPS).

The value of each streamed second varies from month to month based on ticket and advertising sales. Visit the Finance section for more information.

For example: if the RRPS pool available at the end of the month is $10,000, and Rights Receivers collectively earned 1,000,000 eligible streamed seconds that month, each second streamed would be worth $0.01 for that month.

The more tickets and advertising sold through the platform, the higher this per-second value gets — there is no cap on what a second of streaming can pay.

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Fan Accounts

A Fan account is the basic user account. Everyone receives one when they register, and all other accounts they create or join are connected to it.

• Subscribe to Live Performance Groups—including bands, comedians, and audio podcasters—to make their audio catalogues available in your playlist section.
• Create unlimited playlists featuring your subscribed Live Performance Groups, and stream them endlessly, uninterrupted, and free of charge.
• Stream all available livestream archives, films, and videos for free, without limits or interruptions.
• Buy tickets to live performances, livestreams, and cinema presentations.
• Help fund the Rights Receiver Payment System through ticket purchases. The surcharge applied to in-person and livestream tickets is added to the RRPS pool, increasing the value of each second streamed that month.
• Advertise on the platform. Advertising revenue is also added to the RRPS pool, helping increase the amount paid to Rights Receivers for each second streamed.
• Create or join any of the other account types.

Supporting Rights Receivers Directly

Streaming is always free. If you'd like to support a Live Performance Group beyond what RRPS already pays them, and remove ads from the platform, you can donate a small amount per stream directly to the Rights Receivers of that group's music.

• Donations go directly to the Rights Receivers listed for the streamed media, with no deductions.
• Requires a deposit, which automatically tops up each month. Cancel anytime and any remaining deposit balance is refunded.
• Enabling direct support removes ads across the platform for your account.

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Rights Receivers

A Rights Receiver is anyone who is entitled to be paid for media streamed on the platform.

• Earn money for every eligible second of their media that is streamed.
• Receive payment on the 15th of each month for eligible streaming activity from the previous month.
• Receive payments through their connected Stripe account without deductions or fees from Live Industry Radio.

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Live Performance Group Accounts

Live Performance Groups include bands, comedians, audio podcasters, spoken-word performers, theatrical groups, improv groups, dance groups, and other live performers.

• This is the only account type that can upload standalone audio to the platform.
• Upload songs, audio podcasts, spoken-word performances, book readings, instructional material, and other eligible audio.
• Assign the Rights Receivers who are entitled to be paid for each uploaded work and specify their respective percentages.
• Earn RRPS payments for every eligible second of uploaded audio that is streamed.
• Find performance opportunities through the Map. Any event seeking additional performers can be displayed there.
• Filter available opportunities by event type, including music, theatre, dance, comedy, improv, fashion, and visual arts.
• Find and book gigs or plan tours free of charge.
• Sell merchandise through the group's account page.
• Receive monthly Live Performance Group Bonus funds that can be spent internally on eligible productions, products, and services. These funds can help cover expenses such as props, equipment, software, instruments, and production services.
• Create Rights Receiver Lists. These reusable lists make it easier to distribute an account's share of audio, livestream archive, film, or video revenue among the people and organizations entitled to receive it.

LPG Singles

A Live Performance Group can mark one uploaded song as its "Single" track, so it can be played instantly anywhere the group appears on the platform — including event listings and chats.

• Fans see recently featured tracks in a dedicated section of their Playlist area.

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Host Accounts

• Sell tickets to live performances, livestreams, and cinema presentations.
• Have events displayed throughout the platform, making them easier for fans and performers to discover.
• Use the Map to find Live Performance Groups interested in performing at your events.
• Livestream events and sell livestream access tickets to fans who cannot attend in person.
• Schedule a livestream archive for release on the platform between one and eighteen months after the original show.
• After its release, continue earning residual RRPS income from every eligible second of the livestream archive that fans stream. This allows a livestreamed show to become a long-term investment that can continue generating revenue.
• Invest in your own livestreaming equipment or hire an LIR regional office to livestream your events.
• Create Rights Receiver Lists to distribute the account's share of audio, livestream archive, film, or video revenue among the appropriate Rights Receivers and organizations.
• Operate within platform regulations designed to prevent ticket scalping, artificial hype, and unfair ticket-pricing practices.

Ticket Integrity Rules

• All Host events must be cashless — payment and entry are handled entirely through the platform.
• Ticket prices and quantities cannot be changed once the first performer is booked for an event.
• Each payment card can be used once per event, and each fan can complete only one purchase per event.
• Fans may buy a maximum of 15 tickets per transaction.
• Ticket sale proceeds are transferred to the Host one week after the event concludes.
• Fans can report Hosts for violations of these rules or the platform's Terms of Use.

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Video and Film Production Group Accounts

• This is the only account type that can upload video files to be streamed on the platform.
• Upload shows, films, music videos, episodes, and other eligible video productions.
• Make productions available for theaters and other exhibitors to discover and present.
• Release productions for streaming through the RRPS and earn money for every eligible second streamed.
• Sell merchandise through the production group's account page.
• Receive Live Performance Group Bonus funds for filmmaking and video production services.
• A Live Performance Group can allocate some or all of its accumulated Bonus funds to a Video or Film Production Group. The Live Performance Group receives a code, which it gives to the production group. When the production group submits the code, the allocated funds are transferred to its connected Stripe account. The code effectively functions as a credit that helps independent artists cover production costs.
• Create Rights Receiver Lists to distribute the account's share of audio, livestream archive, film, or video revenue among the appropriate Rights Receivers and organizations.

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Service Group Accounts

Service Group accounts are intended for businesses and organizations that provide products or services needed by live performers when those products or services are not provided free of charge through the platform.

• Receive Live Performance Group Bonus funds in exchange for eligible services.
• A Live Performance Group can allocate some or all of its accumulated Bonus funds to a Service Group. The Live Performance Group receives a code, which it gives to the Service Group. When the Service Group submits the code, the allocated funds are transferred to its connected Stripe account.
• Use these Bonus funds to help independent artists reduce the cost of producing and presenting their work.
• Create Rights Receiver Lists to distribute the account's share of audio, livestream archive, film, or video revenue among the appropriate Rights Receivers and organizations.

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Manufacturer and Retailer Group Accounts

Manufacturer and Retailer Group accounts are intended for businesses that sell products needed by live performers and independent creators.

• Receive Live Performance Group Bonus funds in exchange for eligible products.
• A Live Performance Group can allocate some or all of its accumulated Bonus funds to a Manufacturer or Retailer Group. The Live Performance Group receives a code that can be submitted to the business and applied toward an eligible purchase.
• Add the Live Performance Group Bonus API widget to your checkout page so Live Performance Groups can submit Bonus codes during checkout.
• Create Rights Receiver Lists to distribute the account's share of audio, livestream archive, film, or video revenue among the appropriate Rights Receivers and organizations.

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Organization Membership

Host, Live Performance Group, Service Group, Video/Film Production Group, and Manufacturer/Retailer Group accounts can each invite people into their organization to help with administrative duties or for honorary purposes.

• Invited members can be granted specific Abilities that control which functions they can access within the account, such as managing uploads, Rights Proposals, or events.
• An Affiliate membership tier is also available for people who should have access to the organization's private chat without access to its other account functions.

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Important Notes

• Music affiliated with a performing rights organization (PRO) is not permitted on the platform. If PRO-affiliated music appears in a livestream archive, film, or video, the affected portion may be silenced or the media may be removed.
• Uploaders are responsible for ensuring that everyone legally entitled to receive payment for streamed media is properly identified as a Rights Receiver for that media.
• Please review our Terms of Use carefully. You may also provide the Terms of Use to your preferred AI assistant and ask it to explain how these responsibilities apply to you.

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Rights Receiver Allocation Process

• When an account uploads media, it creates a Rights Proposal identifying the Rights Receivers who are entitled to be paid and the percentage assigned to each of them.
• The uploader may also assign percentages to other eligible account types. Fan accounts cannot be assigned a percentage.
• Everyone assigned a percentage in a Rights Proposal must accept or reject their proposed share before the media can become active.
• Rights Proposal decisions are submitted through Updates, the platform's internal messaging system.
• The original proposal created by the uploader is called the Level 0 Rights Proposal. Once everyone has accepted it, the media can become active within the Rights Receiver Payment System.
• If an organization or other account receives a percentage in the Level 0 Rights Proposal, it must distribute that share among the Rights Receivers and accounts within its organization who are entitled to be paid.
• The organization distributes its allotted share by creating another Rights Proposal. This becomes a Level 1 Rights Proposal because it divides a percentage originally assigned through the Level 0 proposal.
• If an account receiving part of the Level 1 allocation needs to divide its own share further, it can create another proposal at the next level. The rights tree can continue for as many levels as necessary.
• This structure provides the flexibility required to pay all of the people, groups, and businesses that contributed to the media.

Rights Receiver Lists

A Rights Receiver List is a reusable list of Rights Receivers, accounts, and their usual percentages. It provides an easier way to create a Rights Proposal.

• Import a Rights Receiver List into a Rights Proposal instead of entering every recipient and percentage manually.
• Duplicate and edit an existing list when performers, contributors, or percentages change.
• Create a list representing a particular show, performance lineup, film, video, or episode.
• For a later show or episode, duplicate the previous list, make the necessary changes, save it, and import it into the new Rights Proposal.

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Media Credentials

In addition to Rights Receivers, who earn ongoing RRPS income for their share of a media's eligible streamed seconds, accounts can credit people for one-off contributions to a song, livestream archive, or film/video — without assigning them any ongoing royalty share.

• Any account type can create and maintain Credential Lists, similar to Rights Receiver Lists.
• Each credential entry has an official name, entered as text, so the person's name always displays correctly regardless of how their Fan account is set up.
• A credential entry can optionally be linked to an actual Fan account. When it is, that person's name becomes a link to their Fan page.
• When a Fan account is linked to a credential, that media automatically becomes streamable directly from that Fan's page, alongside a note of their credential.
• Seconds streamed from a Fan page play the same way as anywhere else on the platform, and count toward RRPS the same way.
• The uploading account controls which other accounts are able to apply a Credential List to a given piece of media. Those accounts then see the assignment in their own Credential List section and link the appropriate list to it — no approval process is required, since credentials carry no royalty obligation.
• Every song, livestream archive, and film/video that a Fan is credentialed on — whether as a Rights Receiver or as a credential — is listed on their Fan page, so their full body of work is visible and streamable in one place.

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Performance Windows

Because media earns money for each second streamed, uploaded media can be divided into sections called Performance Windows. The uploader creates these windows as part of the upload and rights-allocation process.

• Each Performance Window has its own Rights Proposal.
• This allows different portions of the same media to pay different Rights Receivers and accounts.
• Payments are based on the specific seconds streamed within each Performance Window.
• Performance Windows are especially useful for livestream archives containing several performers.
• For example, if viewers skip to the section of a livestream archive containing a particular band's performance, the streamed seconds within that Performance Window are credited to the Rights Receivers identified in that window's Rights Proposal.
• Songs, films, and videos can also be divided into Performance Windows. For example, a film divided into three chapters could assign each chapter to a different Video or Film Production Group.
• A livestream archive Performance Window can be divided into smaller Performance Windows. For example, a band's full performance could be divided into a separate window for each song.
• These smaller windows are called Level 1 Performance Windows, while the larger window containing them is the Level 0 Performance Window.
• The complete rights tree for an uploaded song can be imported into the Rights Proposal for the Level 1 Performance Window representing that song.
• Smaller Performance Windows can also account for lineup changes, such as a guest performer appearing for only one or two songs.

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Example: Creating and Releasing a Livestream Archive

Imagine that six Live Performance Groups appear in a livestreamed show: two bands, two comedians, and two improv groups.

• Each Performance Window uses the following allocation:
• 10% to the Host account representing the venue;
• 10% to the Host account representing the event organizer;
• 5% to the Service Group operating the livestream; and
• 75% to the performer.
• Every eligible second streamed within a Performance Window is divided among these accounts according to the agreed percentages.
• Before the livestream becomes publicly available, every account included in every Performance Window Rights Proposal must contractually accept its percentage.
• Fans buy tickets to the event. Fans watching remotely submit their livestream access codes to watch the show in real time.
• After the show, the Host reviews the livestream archive and assigns the correct start and end times to each Performance Window.
• The previously accepted payment percentages remain contractually locked. However, the affected accounts must complete a second approval process to confirm the seconds assigned to their Performance Windows.
• During this process, the Host can authorize each band to create smaller Performance Windows within the band's original Performance Window.
• Each band can then divide its performance into a separate Performance Window for every song it played.
• The band can allocate its 75% share for each song window according to the existing rights tree for that song. This ensures that the people and organizations entitled to payment for that song receive their agreed shares whenever those specific seconds of the livestream archive are streamed.