How to Dispute/Clear Copyright Claims with TikTok

By purchasing files from our site, you are allowed to use them under our Royalty-Free License Agreement, which allows for worldwide, perpetual use across all media, including Social Media.

Pond5 requires our composers to release claims on any video(s) uploaded by Pond5 customers so that our customers are freely able to monetize their videos or show them without ads if they choose.

Unfortunately, at this time TikTok does not provide an option to proactively provide your license or license certificate validating your use of media. If TikTok raises a claim or copyright concern related to media licensed from Pond5, you are welcome and encouraged to appeal their claim. Keep in mind, since you do have proper rights to use your licensed content, your next step is to file one of these disputes.

 As TikTok is still a fairly new social platform in the US, the stock media industry are still learning more about this platform every day.

At this time, It appears TikTok may only allow music pulled from their Commercial Library, please see here: How to elevate your videos with TikTok’s Commercial Music Library.

With your license from Pond5 we can verify your usage rights are within the allowance of our Content License Agreement. We have provided the steps to dispute TikTok Copyright claims below:

If you are a user located outside of the European Union:

If you are located outside of the European Union, you can reach out to the copyright owner directly to request a release of the claim placed on your video.

You can also alert TikTok with a Counter-Claim notification by filling our their Counter Notification Form. Please be sure to include all necessary information here marked with an asterisk* to avoid your dispute being denied.

If you are a User located in the European Union

If you are located within the European Union and you also have the right to post the content in question, and can also complete a Counter Notification Form.

Under EU law, users are also allowed to use copyrighted material without the permission of the copyright holder for uses like quotation, criticism, review or parody provided that the video does fall within the TikTok Community Guidelines such as videos containing hate speech, hateful behaviour, or being used to mock, abuse or intimidate anyone.

Please note, when submitting your counter-claim to TikTok, be prepared to provide a copy of your license under the "Evidence to substantiate your appeal or counter-claim" section. You can always easily find your licenses here: Pond5 Downloads, Receipts, and Licenses.

In our experience, following these helpful steps can provide a much faster resolution to your outstanding claim. We wish you all the best in resolving your claim with TikTok, and we look forward to creating with you again soon!

Still need some help? Contact us

Was this article helpful?
1 out of 1 found this helpful
Have more questions? Submit a request