The Internet is full of lists and articles detailing where YouTube content creators can find and download music. And, unlike my recent article about Illegal Music Downloads these are infact legitimate resources offering free music under various funky license names. So with that said, is there no place in the modern world for a professional production music library?

The simple answer is no.

I've already discussed the disadvantages of free music, such as the poor production quality, and legality of the distribution rights, but what about those guys who are producing music for anyone to use, for free? Surely there's no downside to that.

Well, yes there is. For you.

With easy access to software to produce funky YouTube slideshows and videos, any home user can take to their Mac or PC and produce a short video about their topic of choice, such as their top 10 Sci-Fi movies, or 10 reasons not to drink Coca-Cola etc. Whack in a few photos and find some quirky music and hey presto you've got a neat little YouTube video with an interesting topic that may generate a few thousand views. Sign yourself up to the Ad-Share program and each view you get could generate you some cash on the side for your YouTube video. Great!

So what about that guy who created the music track to make your video cool and quirky. What does he get? You got the music track free so you don't owe him anything. That's true... to some extent.

However, when you publish your video with YouTube and you're enrolled into the Ad-Share scheme you'll receive a delightful message from YouTube letting you know it's ID copyright system has matched the music track you used to an owner on its database. That's right, the bloke who made it. That friendly guy who said "hey take my music, I made it for you, to use, for free."

Guess who's gonna make all the money back from YOUR video on YouTube...

That's right! Oh, and you can't remove the ads to prevent the money being paid out, because if you've used someone else's music in your video, YouTube makes it mandatory to display advertising alongside YOUR video.

Talk about a kick in the teeth!

So you've chosen your music track, you've sourced your information and images and produced your video to create something that would gain a little momentum, prove popular and make some money back for you for its entertainment value. All that time, effort and creativity becomes wasted because the music you used for free, and legally is owned by someone else and they're collecting on its use.

Can't help but feel like a waste of time...

There is a solution. License a piece of professional royalty free music. Pay a one-time fee that grants you a license to use the music in your YouTube videos forever with no adverts and no copyright claims against your content. You can even use the music track in as many videos as you want.