It’s still unclear what the artist-centric model would look like. While fan-powered royalties - also known as user-centric - were in vogue as one alternative to the pro-rata model, recently the music industry has been discussing a new payout model that Universal Music Group dubbed “artist-centric.” In January, UMG announced a partnership with TIDAL to “research how, by harnessing fan engagement, digital music services and platforms can generate greater commercial value for every type of artist.” In March, UMG announced that it had partnered with Deezer on a similar initiative. SoundCloud, Warner Music Group Strike Deal on Fan-Powered Royalties Warner Music Group became the first major to opt into SoundCloud’s fan-powered royalties last summer. “Which is, ‘Who are the 10,000 people who are my true fans? That over 30% of their listening time is going to that artist?’” “We can provide an enormous amount of information back to artist managers and major labels to actually get at the heart of this,” Weissman added. In a subsequent interview with Billboard, Weissman argued that the fan-powered royalties program “changes streaming from what today is just accessing a catalog of music into truly more of a community platform.” “As the only direct-to-consumer music streaming platform and next generation artist services company, the launch of fan-powered royalties represents a significant move in SoundCloud’s strategic direction to elevate, grow and create new opportunities directly with independent artists.”

“Many in the industry have wanted this for years,” Michael Weissman, SoundCloud’s then-CEO, said at the time. SoundCloud initially launched fan-powered royalties in 2021. This collaboration will strengthen Merlin’s community of independent rightsholders and provide them, and their artists, the tools to build closer relationships with fans.” Merlin CEO Jeremy Sirota added that the “partnership provides our members and their artists with new revenue opportunities, as well as empowering fans to directly support their favorite artists from across Merlin’s global membership.

I’m thrilled that Merlin’s extraordinary community of independent labels and distributors, and by extension their artists, will now benefit.” “The FPR model makes streaming royalties more equitable, helps artists benefit directly from their fans, and opens the door for more meaningful fan-to-artist connection.

“At SoundCloud, we’re committed to being artist-first,” SoundCloud CEO Eliah Seton said in a statement. SoundCloud Will Pay Independent Artists Based on Listeners, Not Streams

The lost years of merlin