TS ISO 3901

TS ISO 3901 is the information and documentation standard for the International Standard Recording Code (ISRC), used to identify recordings uniquely. In practice, it helps distinguish one recording from another within music cataloguing, rights administration, and distribution workflows, especially where the same underlying work appears in multiple recorded forms.

What the standard covers

The standard states that ISRC applies to audio recordings and music video recordings, whether they are in analogue or digital form. Its focus is the recording itself, not the product carrier or the package containing it. That distinction matters in real-world metadata systems, where a track, an album, a physical medium, and a bundled media package may each need different identifiers.

In broader technical context, ISRC sits alongside other identification systems used in the audiovisual and digital content ecosystem. Identifiers such as ISAN or DOI can describe wider audiovisual works or digital objects, while ISRC is aimed specifically at the unique identity of sound and music video recordings. This separation supports cleaner cataloguing, licensing, and interoperability across platforms.

• Provides the ISRC framework for uniquely identifying recordings.
• Applies to audio recordings in analogue or digital form.
• Applies to music video recordings.
• Does not apply to numbering audio or audiovisual products, carriers, or mixed-media packages.
• A music video recording may still be assigned an ISRC even if it also has an ISAN or DOI.