CastMP3 - Frequently Asked Questions

What is CastMP3?
CastMP3 is an online professional services center available to help all artists all around the world to distribute and share their multimedia art (music, video, photo). This service is available at http://www.castmp3.com in English and http://fr.castmp3.com for French speaking users.

How much does it cost to use CastMP3?
There are absolutely no fees to use the services offered by CastMP3.

What are the CastMP3's available Services?
Please refer to the CastMP3 Star System describing all available services to date.

What is your copyright infringement policy?
Uploading any media types that you do not completely own the rights or the distribution rights is strictly prohibited. If you suspect that someone is infringing on copyright protection, please notify us immediatly using the dedicated Copyright Infringement Form link for each individual music and video. Each notification is recorded and sent to our legal department for investigation.

ARTISTS

How do I start?
It's very easy to get set up as an artist. First, signup for your band. Click here or go on the frontpage to register. Once you have created your profile, simply setup your Artist's page and upload your items (songs, videos, photos,...). You can define songs and videos as Sponsored Streams, Sponsored Downloads and Payable Downloads. Please refer to the CastMP3 Star System describing the use of Sponsored Streams, Sponsored Downloads and Payable Downloads.

What kind of media can I upload?
CastMP3 embraces all music genres, video genres or photos. If you are an independent artist and your own the right of your music, video or photo, you may signup to our service and publish your art without any concern.

Will I loose the rights to my songs, videos or photos?
Your material remains yours. We have no right to alter it or use it in any way shape of form before asking for your written permission. Any artist is welcome to join (unless banned by our administrators) and leave CastMP3 at any time. If you choose to do so, all your private information and songs will be permanently deleted from our servers. For all the legal information, please check our terms and conditions. Please refer to the CastMP3 Star System describing CastMP3 Copyrights Management Services.

How to release a song or a video?
Login to your admin area and click on "create song" or "create video". Enter or modify all the required information. Upload your appropriate media file. For a song, you can upload a low quality song file or a high quality song file. Choose the way listeners can get access to your file (stream, download or a preview length).

How to release a song or a video for sale?
In addition to an existing song or video, you can upload a very high quality version you would like to sell. Add this file into your song or video section or using your Digital Vault section. Enter a description and the price you would like to charge for your item. Make sure that you change your listener access to streaming only so that the free download will not be available. You can also use the Digital Vault to propose the sales of other type of Digital Materials compressed into a zip file - a full album + lyrics + photos,...

What types of digital files can I sell?
Current supported media files include:
Music: mp3, mp4, wav, wma, aac, m4a, rm, mid, flac, ogg, aiff
Video: avi, mpg, mov, wmv
Photo: gif, jpg, jpeg, jpe, png, bmp, tiff
Document and rich media: doc, rtf, pdf, swf

How many songs/items can I have for sale?
There is no limit to the number of songs/items you have available until it fits into your allocated space disk given based on your CastMP3 Star System's ranking.

How will I be informed when I have made a sale?
You will receive an email notifying you of all digital sales. Also, sales information are available after login in your back office private section.

What is the method of payment for transactions?
CastMP3 uses PayPal to provide a convenient, efficient and secure method of processing payment transactions.

How much do I earn for each digital sale?
You will earn from 70 to 90 % of the net amount of the purchase price after PayPal transaction fees and CastMP3 process fees. PayPal's transaction fees are equal to 0,25 EUR + 3,4 %. CastMP3's process fees are equal to 1 EUR below 10 EUR purchase and 0 EUR after 10 EUR purchase. These charges are applied to the overall order and not to each song or item. Note that PayPal fees will be incurred when funds are transferred from CastMP3 to your personal PayPal account and will be based on your individual processing fees, generally the same as previously mentioned.

What are the CastMP3 fees?

CastMP3's process fees are equal to 1 EUR below 10 EUR purchase and 0 EUR after 10 EUR purchase. Fees helps CastMP3 to pay for hosting services, artists promotional activities and employee salaries.
Also, because CastMP3 is engaged on several charity causes, we have decided since the beginning of CastMP3 activities, to donate up to 15 % of CastMP3's fees to the World Wildlife Fund. Known worldwide by its panda logo, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) leads international efforts to protect endangered species and their habitats. Now in its fifth decade, WWF works in more than 100 countries around the globe to conserve the diversity of life on earth. With nearly 1.2 million members in the U.S. and another 4 million worldwide, WWF is the world's largest privately financed conservation organization. WWF's mission is the conservation of nature.

When and how do I get my earnings for digital sales?
CastMP3 will process payments at the beginning of each month. If your sales have reached 50 EUR, you will receive a payment via PayPal of your earnings. If your earnings do not total 50 EUR, they will be carried to the next month and so on until your earnings exceed 50 EUR.

Do I have to have PayPal to get paid for digital sales?
You can signup and begin selling downloads without a PayPal account, but you will need to sign up for an account in order to receive your funds.

What type of PayPal account do I need?
As an artist you can signup for a "personal account" at PayPal. You'll need a valid credit card or checking account to do so. Please click here to do so. For those of you that already have an account with PayPal, please make sure the e-mail address is entered in your MODIFY ARTIST page. Any type of PayPal account will work as long as you can receive payments.

How much can I charge for my downloads?
Your pricing is completely up to you. You can charge .10 cents EUR a song if you would like. The only restriction is that customer orders must exceed 5 EUR including CastMP3 process fees.

Can I still use my regular CastMP3 store to sell non-digital items?
Of course. Sales of non-digital items can be made through your CastMP3 store feature. All non-digital store sales will go directly to you using your PayPal email address without any fee from CastMP3.

Is my information safe with CastMP3?
Absolutely. All personal information used when setting up an CastMP3 profile is completely secure and kept private. Financial transactions are handled through PayPal who is renowned for their security and protection. CastMP3 does not handle any credit card information related to digital sales.

Can I use CastMP3 even if I have my downloads available on other sites?
Yes. CastMP3 is a non-exclusive service and you will always retain the rights to your music, video and photo.

CUSTOMERS

How do I get start?
It's very easy to get set up as a member. First, signup for yourself. Click here or go on the frontpage to register. You will need a valid email address that you currently use to validate your account and then you will be ready to go. Once you have created your profile, simply setup your Member page. You are ready to purchase digital contain on CastMP3.

Do I have to have an CastMP3 account to purchase items?
Yes, you will need to sign up for a free CastMP3 account to purchase digital downloads. By having an account, you will have your own file vault of purchased downloads that will be available to you for 15 days after your purchase. This is very convenient as you will not have to worry about losing your downloads with any connectivity or other related issues. You will be able to download them as many times as you would like within those 15 days.

How do I receive my downloads once they are purchased?
Simply go to your "my files" folder located in your CastMP3 admin screen to download your purchased items. You will have 15 days from the date of purchase in which you will be able to download the items as many times as you would like.

How do I pay for my digital downloads?
All payments are processed through PayPal. You can pay through your own PayPal account or directly with your Visa card or MasterCard.

Do I have to have a PayPal account to make a purchase?
No, you will just need to have a credit or debit card to make a purchase.