What we mean by royalty-free
Your subscription brings the original catalogue and permission for the business uses covered by your plan together. You do not buy a separate licence from us for every track you select or each covered play. Your plan states the subscription term and covered use before purchase.
Royalty-free does not mean every use is unrestricted, that the music is free of charge, or that no local requirements can apply. In some countries, a collecting society may also bill venues for playing recorded music; the conditions for your country say whether that applies and what to do. Background music in a venue, a fitness class, an advertisement and a downloadable product are different uses. Your offer needs to say which ones it includes.
Do I need a music license for my store?
A business that plays music to customers needs permission for that music. Personal streaming accounts don’t provide it. When you play only the Open Hours catalogue, your plan includes our permission for ordinary background use at the covered venue.
The conditions for your country are shown before checkout and on the coverage page for each country. In the United States, for ordinary in-venue background playback of only this catalogue, no additional music-rights payment has been identified. Music from other sources, such as radio or a personal streaming app, needs its own permission.
Start with the way your business uses music
Tell us where the music will play, the type of business and the spaces it needs to cover. A shop floor, a hotel lobby and an instructor-led class can raise different questions. The language you browse in does not determine the country or use of your licence.
Your subscription record identifies the covered catalogue, venue, permitted use and period. The local commercial terms explain relevant conditions and requirements alongside the price before you subscribe.
How the catalogue is made
Escalera Labs generates the catalogue in-house with AI, in its own music production workflow. Technical checks support publication, while rights and country/use conditions are maintained centrally for the catalogue source. Identified defects or rights issues can lead to an individual recording being withdrawn.
Escalera Labs S.L. retains and licenses the catalogue. Your plan covers our recordings within its stated scope, rather than unrelated commercial recordings, a personal streaming library or songs obtained from another provider.
Clear scope before you subscribe
Create an account, then add your business name and venue country. Available plans show the price, billing period, venue and stream allowance, with links to the applicable commercial terms before checkout. The pricing page lists the countries with paid offers; contact us about other locations.
If you have a question about a particular country, activity or use, send an enquiry with those details. An enquiry does not itself grant permission for business playback or create a paid plan.
Country coverage
United States background coverage
Check the US Open Hours background offer: supplied-catalogue permission, one venue and stream, separate music sources, and the account-to-plan next step.
United Kingdom background coverage
Understand the UK Open Hours background offer, its direct catalogue permission, the PPL PRS distinction, existing agreements and how to view your venue plan.
Australia background coverage
Check Open Hours coverage in Australia: recording and musical-work permission, the supplied-catalogue boundary, existing music sources and your venue’s plan.
New Zealand background coverage
Understand the New Zealand Open Hours background offer, direct catalogue permissions, the OneMusic distinction and the records to keep before changing sources.