The acronym OAC stands for Official Artist Channel.
An OAC is a type of YouTube channel, identified by the "♩" symbol next to the channel name.
This type of channel can be merged with other channels, such as the VEVO channel, and Topic channel, to create an all-in-one artist HQ channel on YouTube. While the channels exist separately, all of the content will appear under the OACs umbrella.
OACs are not VEVO channels, they are separate from the VEVO channel, and VEVO does not have direct access to log in to OACs.
OACs start as O&O (owned and operated) YouTube channels made for the artist by their management/label/self, and then are converted to OACs by request to YouTube.
How do I request an OAC with YouTube?
VEVO cannot create OACs, please only submit your OAC requests to your label/distributor, who will handle the request with YouTube.
According to YouTube, to be eligible for an OAC, you must meet the following requirements:
- Own and operate a single artist’s or band’s YouTube channel that is focused on the artist’s or band’s music.
- Have at least 1 official music release on YouTube that has been delivered and distributed by a Music Distributor or Label.
- Have a channel that complies with all YouTube policies including YouTube’s Community Guidelines, Terms of Service, and Copyright policies.
If you already have a youtube channel and at least 3 videos please contact your youtube representative to create your OAC.
How do I Merge my OAC with my Vevo channel?
Once your OAC has been created, you can merge the OAC with your VEVO channel!
Channel Merging is what combines the subscriber counts between the two channels, consolidating your fanbase into one place! It is also what causes videos from both channels to appear on the channels upload feed / channel homepage.
Channel Merging can only be done by YouTube. Please do not contact VEVO about channel merging. We are not able to assist with these requests.
To merge your channels, please contact your label or distributor, who in turn, will contact their YouTube rep to merge the channels.
| ✅ What channel merging does: | ⛔ What channel merging does not do: |
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How do I know if my channels are merged?
A sure sign that channels are merged is when the "Subscribe" button disappears from the VEVO channel, and only appears on the OAC.
See the VEVO channel below, has no subscribe button, because it's merged with the OAC!
Another way to check if channels are merged, is to view a VEVO video, and see that the OAC appears as the video's main channel like the example below. Viewers are no longer routed to the VEVO channel when viewing videos, but rather, the merged channel - the OAC!
Adding OACs as moderators
Vevo can add OACs to Vevo channels as moderators.
This means that these linked OACs will be able to access the chat function on premieres and delete comments on videos by going to the URL of the Vevo video. Live chat messages sent by the moderator will also be highlighted and have a "wrench" icon.
FAQ
Will Vevo videos be visible on my OAC channel?
Yes, once the OAC is merged with the VEVO channel, Vevo videos will be visible on the OAC, consolidating all videos into once place. If your channels were recently merged, please allow 24-72 hours for all of the videos to appear.
I have some videos that were delivered to the OAC that I now want to move to the Vevo channel, does channel merging do this?
No, you'll want to migrate the videos from the OAC to the VEVO channel with a process called Chowning. To learn about Chowning, see our support article linked here.
When a Vevo video goes live do users get a notification if they are only subscribed to the OAC channel?
Yes, this is true as long as your YouTube and Vevo channels are merged your subscribers will receive a notification.
Channel merging combines the subscribers from the VEVO channel with the OAC. So anyone who subscribed to the VEVO channel in the past, is now subscribed to the OAC if the channels are merged!
I've delivered a video to my OAC, will this also appear on my Vevo channel?
Vevo videos appear on OACs, but it doesn't work the other way around!
Videos delivered directly to the OAC will not appear on the VEVO channel. In order for this video to appear on both channels you will need to request for the video to be moved to the VEVO channel with a process called Chowning. Further details on how to do this can be found on the below support page.
https://support.vevo.com/hc/en-us/articles/360011644994-Channel-Migration-Chowning
I've delivered a video via Vevo, will I see video analytics on my OAC channel?
Yes, you will see video analytics but not real-time or revenue analytics for this video.
Is there a certain number of videos that a channel needs to merge a Vevo channel and an OAC?
There is no requirement on the number of videos on a Vevo channel for it to be merged with an OAC. However for an artist channel to become an OAC this must have at least one video.
I don't have an OAC - can I still merge my O&O channel with a Vevo channel?
No, channel merging can only be done for OACs.