Apple has filed a new proposal with the US Copyright Royalty Board which it hopes will simplify songwriting royalties in the States.
The Cupertino giant has suggested that all on-demand streaming services should pay songwriters a statutory rate of 9.1 Cents every 100 plays.
That’s a per stream rate of $0.00091, and works out at $910 per million streams, or $910,000 for a billion.
Apple hopes that the CRB will adopt its suggestion by 2018, according to the New York Times.
It appears the company may have other reasons than simplicity for recommending the change: it would force Spotify to hand over more money for plays on its free tier.
“An interactive stream has an inherent value regardless of the business model a service provider chooses,” says the Apple proposal.
Apple didn’t rely on statutory rates when launching Apple Music last year – it inked its own direct deals with rights-holders.
The company confirmed before launch that it would pay labels and publishers 71.5% of all Apple Music revenues in the US after users’ three-month free trial – slightly higher than Spotify’s typical 70%.
Outside the US, Apple is believed to pay around 73%.
Last summer, MBW discovered that Apple Music was paying independent labels $0.002 per stream for its free trial before tax, but this figure did not include publishing/songwriting payouts.Music Business Worldwide
