DDEX
DDEX (Digital Data Exchange) is the standards body that defines how data moves through the digital music supply chain. Its message formats (like ERN for release delivery and DSR for sales reporting) let labels, distributors, and streaming services exchange release metadata, audio, and usage data in one machine-readable language.
The main DDEX standards
DDEX publishes a family of message standards, each covering one leg of the supply chain. ERN (Electronic Release Notification) is the delivery format: it packages a release's metadata, audio references, territories, and dates so a store can ingest it automatically. DSR (Digital Sales Reporting) is the return channel: standardized usage and revenue reports that flow from services back to distributors and labels. RIN (Recording Information Notification) captures studio-level credits — who played, produced, and engineered a recording. The standards are XML- or flat-file-based and versioned, and the consortium's members include major labels, streaming services, distributors, and collecting societies.
Why DDEX matters for your releases
Every release you distribute travels as a DDEX message, whether you ever see one or not. When you upload to bbn.music, your metadata (titles, artists, ISRCs, the UPC, territories, release dates) is transformed into standards-compliant deliveries that 35+ stores in 195 countries ingest automatically. The same machinery runs in reverse: usage reporting comes back in standardized form, which is what makes royalty statements, splits, and payouts computable per track. Your practical takeaway is simple: fill in complete, consistent metadata at upload, and the standards layer does the rest.
DDEX vs. CWR
DDEX standards cover the master side: release deliveries to stores and sales data back. CWR, maintained by CISAC, covers the publishing side: it registers musical works with collecting societies, carrying writers, publishers, IPI numbers, and shares. A label running both sides uses both, usually without touching either format directly. In BBN Label Suite, distribution handles the standards-compliant delivery to stores automatically, and the opt-in publishing module exports CWR files for GEMA and other CISAC societies.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to create DDEX files myself?
No. Your distributor generates them. On bbn.music, the metadata you enter at upload is converted into standards-compliant deliveries automatically; your job is complete and accurate metadata.
Is DDEX a company or a file format?
Neither exactly: DDEX is a standards consortium. It publishes the message formats, like ERN and DSR, that the industry's companies implement.
Does DDEX assign ISRCs or UPCs?
No. DDEX messages transport identifiers; the codes themselves come from other systems. bbn.music assigns ISRCs and UPCs automatically at upload, at no cost.