UPCs and ISRCs explained
What they identify, and when to supply your own.
These two codes are how the industry tells recordings apart. Getting them right is what makes royalties land in the correct account.
ISRC — the recording
An International Standard Recording Code identifies one specific recording. A song and its radio edit are different recordings, so they get different ISRCs. The same recording appearing on a single and later on an album keeps the same ISRC — that is the point of it, and it is how the streams stay attached to one track.
UPC — the release
A UPC identifies the release as a product. A single, an EP and an album each get their own UPC, even when they share recordings.
Supplying your own
Leave both fields blank and BASSMA assigns codes automatically. Supply your own when:
- The recording has been released before and already has an ISRC. Reuse it — a new code splits the streaming history in two.
- You hold a block of codes from a national ISRC agency.
- A label or rights holder has issued codes you are required to use.
Never invent a code or reuse one from a different recording. Stores validate them, and a collision can hold up the whole delivery.