UGC rights: using customer videos in your ads
Short answer
A tag isn't permission. To repost a customer's video on your brand account, and especially to use it in ads, you need the creator's permission for that use, in writing. Their face and voice need consent too. And the music in their video was probably picked from the app's personal-use library, which doesn't cover your brand's ads. Get permission for the video and replace or clear the music before you promote it.
Why UGC is so tempting
User-generated content is the best ad creative many brands ever get. A real customer, filmed on a real phone, saying the product changed their morning. It converts better than anything polished. So when someone tags you in a great video, the instinct is to download it and put it in an ad that afternoon.
That instinct skips three separate rights: the video, the person in it, and the music. Each belongs to someone, and none of them belong to you because you were tagged.
Right 1: the video itself
Whoever filmed the video generally owns its copyright. Posting it publicly and tagging your brand doesn't transfer anything to you. Platform features help a little: resharing to Stories or using in-app sharing tools keeps the post attributed and on the platform. But downloading it and re-uploading it as your own post, or uploading it into Ads Manager, needs the owner's permission.
The cleanest permission is short and written: who they are, which video, how you'll use it (organic repost, paid ads, website), for how long, and whether you're paying. A DM thread can work if it's clear, but a simple one-page release is better for anything you'll put money behind.
Right 2: the people in it
Using someone's face, voice or name to sell a product is governed by right of publicity laws in many US states. Organic reposting with attribution is lower risk. Running their face in a paid ad they never agreed to is how brands end up with claims from people who never thought of themselves as models. If there are other people in the video, like friends in the background, they're part of this too.
Right 3: the music
This is where UGC quietly goes wrong. Customers make videos on personal accounts with whatever song is trending. That song comes from the platform's general library, licensed for personal use. The customer can't give you a license for it, because they don't have one to give.
When you repost that video on your brand account, it's now brand content with an uncleared song. When you run it as an ad, it's paid advertising with an uncleared song. That's the exact pattern in several label lawsuits: a brand reposting creator content with a hit song. In one case described in the complaint against Quince, the brand reposted a creator's video and swapped in a hit song of its own.
A simple process that works
- Find the video. Tagged posts, hashtag searches, reviews with video.
- Ask in writing. Say exactly how you'll use it: organic, ads, website, and for how long. Offer something in return; product or a fee makes the permission clearer.
- Get the people covered. Confirm everyone recognisable in the video agrees to appear in ads.
- Ask for the raw file. Ideally without music, or with the original sound only.
- Replace the music. Add a track that's cleared for your use: a library track that covers ads, or original audio.
- File it. Keep the permission, the date, the scope and the end date with the asset.
A quick scenario
A candle brand finds a customer's TikTok unboxing with 900,000 views and a sped-up chart song. The social lead DMs the customer, who's thrilled and says "use it however you want!". The team downloads it and runs it as a Meta ad. They've got a friendly but vague permission for the video, nothing about using the customer's face in ads, and a hit song nobody licensed. Two minutes more would have fixed it: a short written release, and a request for the original file without music.
Reviews with video
Product reviews on your site or a marketplace often include customer videos. Showing them where they were posted is usually covered by that platform's terms. Pulling them into ads or social posts is a new use, and the same three questions apply: permission for the video, consent from the person, and the music in it.
Paid UGC creators
Many brands now pay UGC creators to make ad-ready videos that never go on the creator's own feed. The same three rights apply, and they're easier to handle because you're paying. Put the usage scope, term and a music rule in the brief and the contract: original audio or brand-supplied tracks only, and raw files delivered without music. See the creator brief music rules template.
Already running customer videos as ads? We'll check the music in your ads and reposts, and flag which need swapping. First check from $500 for up to 100 posts, free if there's nothing to fix.
General information, not legal advice. Right of publicity laws vary by state and country.
Common questions
Can I repost a video a customer tagged us in?
Sharing it with the platform's own reshare tools is lower risk. Downloading and reposting it as your own content, or using it in ads, needs the creator's permission.
Is a DM saying 'sure, use it' enough?
It's better than nothing, but for ads get a short written release that names the video, the uses and the term.
Does the customer's permission cover the music?
No. They picked the song from a personal-use library. Swap the music or license it before using the video commercially.
Do I need permission from people in the background?
For ads, anyone recognisable should agree to appear. Right of publicity rules vary by state.
What's the safest way to get UGC for ads?
Pay creators to make it, with a contract that sets usage rights and requires original or brand-supplied audio.
Part of: Creator and affiliate rights
Related guides
General information, not legal advice. Platform rules and licenses change; check the current terms or ask your lawyer about your situation. Lawsuit figures are as reported and represent claims, not findings, unless noted.