Apple Music Pays One Cent Per Stream, Roughly Two Times More Than Spotify: WSJ

Apple Music has told artists and labels that it pays double Spotify’s average streaming royalties.

According to a letter the Cupertino company posted on its artist dashboard (via Wall Street Journal) sent to artists and publishers, Apple Music pays one cent per stream, which is roughly double Spotify’s average rate.

“Apple’s penny-per-stream payment structure — which music-industry experts say can dip lower — is roughly double what Spotify, the world’s largest music-streaming service, pays music-rights holders per stream,” reads the WSJ report. “Spotify pays an average of about one-third to one-half penny per stream, though its larger user base generates many more streams. Apple’s payments come out of monthly subscription revenue from users.”

In the letter, Apple says it pays 52 percent of subscription revenue to record labels and other music rights holders. This is then shared between artists and other rights-holders, including the label, publisher and distributor.

Spotify sometimes pays the same rate, or even slightly more, at 50 to 53 percent, notes the report. However, Spotify is paying around half of that Apple does per stream on average.

Apple goes on to say it “believes in paying every creator the same rate, that a play has a value, and that creators should never have to pay for featuring.”