Digital Lead Times

We advise that all new releases be complete & approved for delivery at least 4 weeks ahead of release date (and you should leave more time where possible). Once your release is submitted and approved, it generally takes just a few days for your release to be delivered and ingested by most digital services. However, some services may take longer than others to have your release ready to publish so it’s wise to leave more time to ensure a unified release across all stores. The additional lead time also allows for pre-release promotion and marketing – which is a critical part of any successful release campaign.

You should also allow this lead time In order to give Kudos the best opportunity to pitch your releases for editorial features and playlist placements, and to market your products on our published schedules. By default, the portal will enforce this lead time when you select your release date. We understand that in some cases it will be necessary to rush through releases with little or no lead time. This can be arranged with your account manager. However, you should be aware that DMS editorial decisions are usually made weeks in advance and so you may forgo some or all marketing & pitching activities and this may impact the performance of the release. 

You should always try and make sure your release data is complete, correct and release-ready when you make your original submission. However, it’s possible to update most aspects of your release later – even after it has been delivered and published on stores. Note that it’s not possible to change track and release identifiers (UPC, ISRC) or change the structure of your release (i.e. number and order of tracks and/or discs) once a release has been delivered.

Whenever you edit a product that’s already been reviewed by our team, you must re-submit the release when your changes are complete. Otherwise, your release will remain in a draft state and your updates will not be applied on stores. In normal circumstances, updates will be sent to stores on the same day the submission is approved. Some stores will process and reflect these updates almost instantly, while others may take a few days or even longer.

Below you will find information on minimum lead time expectations and other relevant notes for specific key services. Bear in mind that guidelines published by a DMS will be based on the periods which apply only once the delivery or update has been received from Kudos. You may need to allow an additional 1-3 days for our processing and delivery.

Spotify’s SLG states that in order to achieve your desired release date, new releases should be delivered at least 5 days before the earliest release date and that metadata/asset updates must be delivered at least 2 days in advance. Updates sent for published releases also take 2 days to be reflected on the user app and on Spotify for Artists (SfA).

Note that for editorial purposes, Spotify recommends that releases be delivered at least 7 days ahead of release in order to be eligible for Release Radar in the week of release. In order to select the track used for Release Radar and to pitch for editorial playlists, a submission must be made using the SfA upcoming release tool at least 7 days prior.

 Apple Music & iTunes

Deliveries to Apple are generally ingested within 24-48 hours but are often actioned the same day within a few hours. However, some release updates may take up to 5 days due to Apple’s quality control checks.

For editorial pitching the products need to have been delivered a minimum of two weeks in advance (some special promotions require lead times of up to 6 weeks).

Deliveries and updates should be effective within 1-3 days, but often within 24 hours.

Deliveries and updates should be effective within 1-3 days.

Deliveries and updates should be effective within 7 days.

Deliveries and updates should be effective within 7 days.