ElevenLabs Music for a TV spot: two pages that do not agree
ElevenLabs music page says self-serve plans exclude film, TV and games; the API docs say cleared for film and TV. Get this in writing before a broadcast ad.
If your ad runs on TV, do not rely on one ElevenLabs page. As read on 2026-10-04, the music page says self-serve plans allow commercial use except for film, TV and Studio Games, while the API docs page says music is cleared for film, television, advertisements and more. The pages may describe different channels or plans, so ask ElevenLabs for the answer in writing before broadcast spend.
The two statements side by side
The music page says self-serve plans permit "online and offline commercial use, except for film, TV, and Studio Games" and that enterprise plans allow all online and offline commercial use. The API docs page says the music is "cleared for nearly all commercial uses, from film and television to podcasts and social media videos, and from advertisements to gaming", and sends you to the music terms for plan-specific details.
| Source | Film and TV | Advertisements | Plan caveat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Music page | Excluded on self-serve; enterprise covers all | Online and offline commercial use | Depends on plan |
| API docs page | Named as a cleared use | Named as a cleared use | See terms for plan details |
| Music terms | Not a rights grant; restricts sectors and inputs | Not stated in our read | Model-Specific Terms take precedence |
Why a buyer should not guess
Both statements can be true: the docs may describe the breadth of the content licence, while the plan page describes what your subscription lets you do with it. A broadcast ad is the case where that difference costs money. A media buy is booked against a clearance, and a wrong assumption surfaces after air date.
A written-clearance routine
Ask in writing, name the plan, and keep the answer with the asset:
- Which plan are we on, and does it cover a broadcast or CTV spot?
- Does the answer change between the app and the API?
- Do permissions at generation time stay with the track if the plan changes later?
- Who do we show the licence to if a platform asks?
If you would rather avoid the question
For TV-bound work some teams choose an engine whose terms they have already cleared, then treat the generator as one input among several. Sume's Music Router routes to Lyria 3.5 by default and charges a fixed price per generation; it does not turn a vendor page into a licence for your channel, so the same written-clearance step applies. Use metadata on the job to record the clearance reference, as Music 1.0 says metadata is stored on the job and not sent to the provider.
Final point: this is a reading of public pages, not legal advice. When the pages disagree, the contract wins.
Sources
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