Do you have a song that found its way to your iPod after hearing in the background of a movie? In many of these cases, songs that you’ve heard of before, when presented in a more significant context, can take on a completely different meaning that eventually catches your interests. In today’s world, where you can ‘Shazam’ any tune that catches your attention and find out what the song is in a matter of seconds, record labels should pay more attention to their licensing agreements, because with the right placement can add a tremendous amount of value to that-song-you-heard-on-the-radio-the-other-day.

Iron Man/Tony Stark(Robert Downey Jr.) sporting a Black Sabbath t-shirt in the Avengers. © 2012 Marvel. All rights reserved.

A great example of effective song placement is the recurring AC/DC and Black Sabbath tunes in the Iron Man movies and their trailers. These musical legends from a previous era are now far from being a household name among the younger generations. While no Black Sabbath songs are featured in the latest Avengers movie, Tony Stark could still be seen wearing a Black Sabbath t-shirt throughout the movie. The placement of music has undoubtedly generated interest from the younger movie goers who went to the see the movie. While good music is supposed to be timeless, it still needs to be introduced to people have never been exposed and are accustomed to something different. It is the same reason why Aerosmith saw a 250% boost in record sales following Steven Tyler’s $10 million judging gig on American Idol.

Although Record Labels have to right to ask for a licensing fee from production companies that wish to use their music to compliment their products, it is wonder that they’re not the ones paying to have their music and artists included in the media, because the agreement is clearly beneficial to both parties.