White-label work sits in a strange place for creative agencies. You produce the video, design the campaign, or build the deliverable, and another studio presents it to their client as their own. The arrangement can be highly profitable and a reliable source of repeat revenue. But without a written white-label agreement, you're exposed on every front: ownership, payment, liability, credit, and what happens if the end client complains.
West Melbourne Studios treats white-label agreements as essential documents, not optional paperwork. The absence of one doesn't just create legal risk. It creates confusion about who controls the work, who carries the blame when something goes wrong, and who gets paid and when.
What a white-label agreement actually covers
A white-label agreement is a contract between your agency (the producer) and a partner agency (the reseller) that governs the terms under which you create work that the reseller will sell on as their own. It's different from a standard services agreement in three important ways: it explicitly addresses attribution, it shifts the client relationship to the reseller, and it defines how risk is allocated when you're invisible to the end buyer.
The core sections of a well-drafted white-label agreement include:
- Scope of services. Precisely what you will deliver, in what format, and to what specification.
- Intellectual property ownership. Whether IP transfers to the reseller on payment, or stays with you until certain conditions are met.
- Attribution and confidentiality. A clear prohibition on the reseller identifying you as the producer to the end client, and what exceptions exist.
- Payment terms and structure. Deposit, milestone payments, final payment, and what happens if the reseller's client defaults.
- Liability and indemnity. Who carries responsibility if the end client rejects the work, claims a defect, or initiates a dispute.
The IP clause is the most important section
Intellectual property is the point where most white-label arrangements become disputes. Get this clause right before anything else.
There are two reasonable positions. First: IP transfers to the reseller upon full payment, and the reseller is then free to pass it to their end client however they see fit. Second: IP remains with your studio until the reseller has fulfilled specific conditions, including payment in full and written sign-off. The second position gives you more leverage if payment stalls. It's the one West Melbourne Studios recommends for new or unproven reseller relationships.
The agreement should also specify what you retain. Raw footage, unused takes, and project files may have value for your own portfolio or future use. If you're delivering a finished video, clarify whether the reseller receives only the final export or the full project package. Raw assets handed over without restriction can end up re-edited in ways that damage your reputation, even if your name isn't attached.
For any work involving music, stock footage, or third-party assets, the IP clause should state who holds the licence and who bears the cost of any licence breach. If you're sourcing music for a video that a reseller will deliver to a corporate client, make sure the licence permits commercial resale use, and document that clearly in the agreement.
Attribution and confidentiality: defining your invisibility
The point of white-label work is that your studio's involvement stays private. The agreement needs to make this explicit and mutual. The reseller must not identify you to the end client. You must not contact the end client directly, pitch them for work, or identify the reseller relationship on your own marketing materials without written permission.
Confidentiality works both ways, and the clause should say so. You'll likely learn things about the reseller's pricing, margins, and client relationships in the course of delivering work. That information belongs to them. Equally, your rate card, production process, and supplier relationships are yours.
A common mistake is omitting a portfolio clause. You may want to use the finished work in your own reel or website once a defined period has passed. Negotiate this upfront. Some resellers will agree to allow portfolio use after 12 to 24 months, with any branding or client identifiers removed. Others will prohibit it entirely. Either outcome is acceptable as long as it's documented.
Payment terms that account for the reseller layer
White-label arrangements add a credit risk layer that standard client work doesn't have. You invoice the reseller. The reseller invoices their client. If their client doesn't pay, you still need to be paid.
The agreement should make clear that your payment obligation rests with the reseller, not the end client. You're not party to their client relationship. Their client's default is their problem, not yours.
Structure payments to protect your position. A deposit of 40 to 50 per cent before production begins is standard. A second milestone payment at delivery of a first draft is reasonable for larger productions. Final payment before final files are released is non-negotiable. Releasing final deliverables without receiving full payment is one of the most common errors in white-label arrangements, and it leaves you with no leverage at all.
If you're working with a reseller regularly, a retainer structure can work well. A well-structured retainer agreement gives both parties predictability: you have guaranteed work, they have guaranteed access to your capacity. Build the white-label terms into the retainer from the start rather than layering them on later.
Liability, indemnity, and what happens when things go wrong
This is the section most white-label agreements get wrong, either by being silent on liability or by using boilerplate that doesn't account for the three-party dynamic of producer, reseller, and end client.
Your studio's liability should be capped. A standard cap is the total fees paid under the agreement. You should not be exposed to consequential losses, lost profits, or third-party claims arising from how the reseller uses the work after delivery.
The indemnity clause should require the reseller to indemnify you against any claims brought by their end client. You weren't party to that relationship. You didn't make promises to the end client. You shouldn't bear the cost of disputes you couldn't control.
Conversely, you should indemnify the reseller against claims arising from your own errors: defective work, IP infringement in assets you sourced, or breach of the agreement terms. The allocation should follow responsibility, not just default to one side.
Change orders within a white-label structure
Scope creep is a risk in any production, but it's amplified in white-label arrangements because the request chain is longer. The end client asks the reseller. The reseller asks you. By the time a change request reaches your studio, it may have been simplified, exaggerated, or reframed in ways that don't match the original brief.
Your white-label agreement should require that all change requests come through the reseller in writing, and that your standard change order process applies. Documenting changes protects both parties. If the reseller tells you verbally that the client wants three extra revision rounds, you need that in writing before you begin. A properly written change order keeps the work defined, the timeline protected, and the additional fees agreed before any extra work starts.
Termination clauses
Both parties should have clearly defined exit rights. Standard termination clauses cover three scenarios: termination for breach (one party fails to meet obligations), termination for convenience (either party ends the arrangement with notice, typically 30 days), and termination upon insolvency.
On termination, the agreement should specify what happens to work in progress. If you're mid-production when a termination notice arrives, you're owed payment for work completed to that point. The agreement should specify that clearly, along with how that value is calculated.
For ongoing white-label relationships, include a post-termination restriction on the reseller approaching your subcontractors or freelancers directly. If you've built a team to service their account, losing that team to direct engagement after termination is a real risk.
Getting signatures before production begins
A white-label agreement that isn't signed before work starts is effectively no agreement at all. The most common version of this error is studios that begin work on a handshake or email exchange while the contract sits unsigned, then find themselves in a dispute with no enforceable document to reference.
Send the agreement with the deposit invoice. Make counter-signing a condition of commencing work. It takes one clear policy communicated at the start of each relationship to make the habit stick.
White-label work can be genuinely excellent business for a creative agency. Stable volume, less client management, and often strong margins. The agreement is what keeps it that way.