Global Metadata Playbook: Preparing Your Catalog for Partnerships Like Kobalt–Madverse

Hook: Stop losing revenue to sloppy metadata — get audit‑ready for partners like Kobalt–Madverse

If your catalog isn’t audit‑clean, global publishing partnerships can turn from opportunity into months‑long friction. The January 2026 Kobalt–Madverse tie‑up spotlights a trend: global administrators are onboarding large regional catalogs, but they expect enterprise‑grade metadata, signed chain‑of‑title and machine‑readable splits. This playbook gives publishers and creators a step‑by‑step metadata and rights management checklist to pass audits, accelerate royalty collection and future‑proof catalogs for partners and platforms in 2026.

Top takeaways — what you should do this week

• Run a source‑of‑truth audit for all works and recordings (identify missing ISRC/ISWC/IPI).
• Standardize splits in machine‑readable format and get signed evidence for every co‑write.
• Register with relevant CMOs and digital registries (including new regional partners announced in 2025–2026).
• Prepare a single CSV/DDEX bundle with required fields before partner onboarding to avoid collection delays.
• Fix bank and tax forms — payment holds are often due to W‑8/W‑9 or missing IBAN/SWIFT.

Why this matters in 2026 — current trends and context

Late 2025 and early 2026 saw a wave of strategic partnerships between global administrators and regional distributors (the Kobalt–Madverse deal announced Jan 2026 is a clear signal). These alliances expand collection reach into high‑growth markets but also raise metadata standards. Administrators now rely on automated matching and AI tools; if your metadata is inconsistent, your royalties get unmatched or routed to suspense.

Regulatory and platform changes in 2025 increased demands for transparency: streaming services and rights bodies tightened mechanical reporting, DDEX adoption accelerated, and platforms asked for more granular rights metadata to support AI use licensing. That means publishers and creators must deliver precise, validated identifiers and signed ownership evidence to get paid quickly.

Core identifiers and terms you must master

• ISRC — recording identifier. One per master recording; used for sound recording royalties and distribution reporting.
• ISWC — work identifier. One per musical work; used for publishing/performing rights.
• IPI (Interested Party Information) — writer/publisher numeric ID used by CMOs for accurate payment routing.
• GRid / Release ID — release‑level identifier (important for catalogue bundles and DDEX messages).
• DDEX messages — the electronic format administrators expect for bulk transfers (Work, Release, Recording messages).
• Splits — percentages for writers and publishers; must sum to 100% at both writer and publisher levels.

Step‑by‑step metadata & rights checklist (operational playbook)

This is the operational checklist you should run for every track, album and composition before sending a catalog to a partner like Kobalt or a distributor such as Madverse.

Step 1 — Establish a single source of truth

1. Consolidate master files: centralize recording metadata, stems and UPC/GRid records in one catalog system or spreadsheet.
2. Tag every record with a unique internal catalog ID (do not rely on filenames).
3. Version control: keep immutable records of changes with timestamps and user IDs.

Step 2 — Validate technical identifiers

1. ISRC: ensure each master has an ISRC. If missing, obtain from your national ISRC agency or assign via your distributor. Document assignment date and agency.
2. ISWC: ensure each composition has an ISWC. Register works with a CMOs or through a publisher admin to get or validate ISWCs.
3. GRid/UPC: attach release‑level GRid/UPC codes and link to constituent ISRCs.

Step 3 — Normalize people and entity data

1. Collect legal names, artist/stage names, and all metadata variants (including diacritics and local scripts).
2. Capture IPI/CAE numbers for writers and publisher entities. If a writer lacks an IPI, register them with their local CMO immediately.
3. Standardize publisher names — avoid multiple spellings for the same publisher; map aliases to a canonical publisher ID.

Step 4 — Lock down splits and chain‑of‑title

1. Document splits in decimal percentages (e.g., 33.3333). Ensure writer shares and publisher shares each total 100% where applicable.
2. Gather signed split agreements or split sheets for every co‑write and upload scans to a secure repository with document management.
3. For transfers or acquisitions, include assignment contracts and effective dates — match the contract to the registry entry.

Step 5 — Rights and territory mapping

1. Indicate the rights you control for each asset: publishing admin, sub‑publishing, mechanical, sync, neighboring and master rights.
2. Map territories and exclusivity periods (e.g., "Worldwide except India" or specific start/end dates).
3. Clarify third‑party samples or interpolations and attach sample clearance letters.

Step 6 — Registration with collection bodies and digital platforms

1. Register works with appropriate CMOs (PRS, ASCAP, BMI, SOCAN, GEMA, IPRS for India, JASRAC etc.) and the MLC (US) if applicable.
2. Register recordings with SoundExchange or local neighboring rights bodies for performance/streaming digital neighboring royalties.
3. Supply metadata to DSPs and aggregators using DDEX Work/Release messages where possible.

Step 7 — Financial and tax readiness

1. Confirm payee bank details (IBAN, SWIFT, bank name) and ensure they match legal entity names on contracts.
2. Collect tax forms (W‑9 for US entities, W‑8BEN/E for non‑US payees) and VAT/registration numbers where required.
3. For cross‑border relationships, preempt VAT and withholding issues by liaising with the partner’s finance team.

Step 8 — Packaging for partner onboarding

1. Create a single bulk package (CSV + PDF evidence + DDEX messages) and validate with an internal QA checklist.
2. Fields to include (minimum): internal catalog ID, ISRC, ISWC, track title, artist, release title, UPC/GRid, writers (names + IPI), publishers (names + IPI), writer shares, publisher shares, release date, territory, rights controlled, bank & tax details.
3. Include scanned signed split sheets, assignment deeds, and sample clearance PDFs in a clearly named folder structure backed by immutable storage.

Sample CSV header (practical template)

Below is a streamlined CSV header you can use as a minimum when preparing a bundle. Customize with partner‑specific fields.

catalog_id,track_title,artist,release_title,upc_or_grid,isrc,iswc,track_length,release_date,writer_name,writer_ipi,writer_share,publisher_name,publisher_ipi,publisher_share,rights_controlled,territories,bank_name,iban,swift,tax_form,file_links

Passing audits — what partners will ask for and how to prepare

Administrators and partners perform three common audits: metadata completeness, chain‑of‑title, and financial/tax. Here's how to anticipate each.

Metadata completeness audit

• Expect automated validation checks for required fields and identifier formats (ISRC length/structure, ISWC prefixes, numeric IPI).
• Action: run automated data validation and fix formatting issues (trim whitespace, normalize diacritics, use ISO country codes). Consider automation tools to scale validation across thousands of records.

Chain‑of‑title audit

• Partners will ask for signed split sheets, writer agreements and proof of publisher ownership.
• Action: create a package of signed PDFs with a manifest file that maps each document to the relevant work by internal catalog ID and store it in a service reviewed for longevity (see our note on legacy document storage).

Financial & compliance audit

• Expect requests for bank confirmations, tax forms and beneficial owner details.
• Action: pre‑collect and notarize where required; reconcile company registration details with payee names on bank accounts.

Common metadata mistakes that delay collection (and how to fix them)

1. Missing or incorrect ISRCs — fix by reissuing or assigning via the national ISRC agency and inform DSPs/administrators.
2. Ambiguous writer names — map all name variants to a single IPI and use that for registrations.
3. Splits that don’t sum to 100% — recalculate and correct decimal precision; get sign‑off from all parties.
4. Unregistered publishers or missing IPI — register the publisher entity with a local CMO or the partner admin immediately.
5. Broken links to evidence — embed documents and create checksums/hashes to prevent link rot during audits; consider adding observability so you can detect missing assets early (observability and audit dashboards).

Remediation playbook: recovering lost royalties and retroactive claims

If you find unmatched or withheld royalties, follow this remediation sequence:

1. Identify unmatched streams/sales using admin dashboards and ledger exports.
2. Confirm which identifier or split caused mismatches (ISRC vs. ISWC vs. IPI).
3. Prepare a claims packet: corrected metadata, signed split sheets, proof of release (invoices/UPC records), and a concise claims cover letter.
4. Submit claims to the partner admin or DSP claims portal; track using ticket numbers and deadlines.
5. If the claim is denied, escalate to the partner’s rights resolution team and retain correspondence for an audit trail. Use a documented process inspired by modern incident response playbooks to manage timelines and evidence.

Workflow & tooling — how modern teams scale metadata hygiene

Scaling a clean catalog requires a mix of process, people and tooling:

• Catalog management system (single source of truth with API access).
• Automated validators (ISRC format checks, IPI matching, split totals).
• Document management with immutable storage (hashes/time stamps for split agreements and contracts).
• Integration with DDEX and partner APIs for push/pull workflows.
• Audit dashboards that highlight missing fields, mismatched identifiers and potential split disputes. For large catalogs, consider observability patterns used in modern lakehouse tooling (observability-first).

Practical stack example

A small publisher can achieve enterprise results with this stack:

• Spreadsheet or lightweight database as canonical catalog (internal catalog ID).
• Metadata validator script (Python/Node) to enforce formats and flag missing IDs.
• Cloud object storage with signed URLs for evidence PDFs (choose a provider with strong longevity guarantees — see legacy document storage reviews).
• DDEX message generation via an open library or partner tool to produce Work/Release/Recording bundles.

Case study: how cleaning metadata sped up collection (anonymized)

In late 2025, an independent South Asian publisher prepared 5,000 tracks for onboarding to a global admin partner. Initial scans showed 28% lacked ISRCs, 34% had split inconsistencies and 18% had missing IPI numbers. Within 10 weeks, the publisher:

• Assigned missing ISRCs and registered ISWCs for 85% of works.
• Standardized names and resolved split disputes with signed scans.
• Delivered a DDEX bundle and CSV manifest to the partner.

Result: the partner cleared distribution holds and began collection within six weeks of submission instead of three months — accelerating the first payment run by 9 weeks and increasing matched royalties by 22% in the first quarter. The team used practical, delivery‑focused templates from modern publishing workflow guides to automate manifest generation (modular publishing workflows).

Preparing for the future — 2026 and beyond

Expect these shifts through 2026:

• Higher automation — admins will rely more on machine learning for matching; poor metadata will be auto‑rejected faster.
• More rigorous audits — partners entering emerging markets will demand stricter chain‑of‑title proof to limit legal risk.
• AI training rights — new rights reporting fields will appear to capture permissions for AI/ML uses.
• Expanded regional consolidation — expect more Kobalt‑style deals pairing global admins with regional platforms; being audit‑ready will be the price of entry.

Quick checklist you can print and use now

1. Consolidate catalog into single system; assign internal IDs.
2. Ensure every master has an ISRC; every work an ISWC.
3. Collect writer and publisher IPIs for all parties.
4. Make splits machine‑readable and signed.
5. Register works with relevant CMOs and MLC/SoundExchange where applicable.
6. Attach signed contracts, split sheets and sample clearances in a manifest.
7. Validate bank/tax forms and payment details.
8. Package CSV + DDEX messages and run automated validation before submission. Use templated packaging patterns from modern publishing workflow playbooks (modular publishing workflows).

Final checklist for partner onboarding (pre‑submission go/no‑go)

• All required identifiers present and correctly formatted.
• Signed split agreements for every co‑write and sample use.
• Publisher registration with CMOs and evidence of registration.
• Bank and tax compliance documents uploaded and verified.
• Manifest linking each work to supporting evidence files.

“Partnerships like Kobalt–Madverse are fantastic for reach — but the gatekeepers now ask for enterprise‑grade metadata. Be ready.”

Call to action — get audit‑ready and accelerate collection

Ready to move fast? Start with a free metadata health check. Run an automated scan of your catalog to identify missing ISRC/ISWC/IPI, split anomalies and required documents. If you’d like hands‑on help, lyric.cloud offers catalog cleanup services, DDEX packaging and audit‑ready manifests tailored for global partners like Kobalt and regional hubs like Madverse. Book a consultation to get a prioritized remediation plan and a downloadable CSV template based on this playbook.

Next step: Export your catalog, run the quick checklist above, and contact us for a free 15‑minute metadata triage call to map your path to faster royalties.

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