ISRC Knowledge

The International Standard Recording Code
ISRC enables recordings to be uniquely and permanently identified. ISRC helps to avoid ambiguity and simplifies the management of rights when recordings are used across different formats, distribution channels or products. The ISRC for a recording remains a fixed point of reference when the recording is used across different services, across borders, or under different licensing deals.

The structure (syntax) of ISRC comprises 12 alphanumeric characters, formed from the four code elements:

• Country Code – two characters issued by the ISRC Agency
• Registrant Code – a three-character alpha-numeric code issued by the ISRC Agency
• Year of Reference – the last two digits of the year in which the ISRC is assigned to the track – allocated by the Registrant
• Designation Code – 5-digit unique code assigned by the Registrant. These numbers must not be repeated in the same calendar year.

The International ISRC Agency uses the Registrant Code JM-K40 for illustrative purposes and this code will never be assigned to recordings.

There are some basic checks that can be carried out to detect whether an ISRC is validly formed. These checks may be automated and could be used as part of a system for maintaining data quality.

ISRC VALIDITY
As with any widely used system, errors may occasionally arise that can cause improperly formed codes to be circulated in place of ISRCs.

There are some checks that may be carried out to determine whether codes meet the requirements of a validly-formed ISRC. The code should be a 12-character alphanumeric string that fits the structure of ISRC.

Country code characters should correspond to that subset of the ISO 3166-1 alpha 2 country code table which has been utilised within the ISRC system.

If you released song with JMR Music then you can lookup ISRC database.