“Apple has opened talks with record labels about getting rights for a music-streaming service — but has gotten plenty of push back because its offer is seen as way too cheap,” Claire Atkinson reports for The New York Post. “The tech titan, the most valuable company in the world, made an initial offer to the label of about 6 cents per 100 songs streamed, sources said.”
“That’s about half of the 12 cents per 100 songs paid by Pandora, the leading online radio service that Apple is taking aim at, sources said,” Atkinson reports. “‘Apple wants a rate that is lower than Pandora’s,’ said one high-level executive.”
MacDailyNews Take: Of course they do; they’re going to stream millions upon millions more songs than Pandora.
“While the labels would admit Apple’s music service could tap a whole new revenue stream for them, they are loath to say yes to the offer as the industry is fighting on Capitol Hill to prevent Pandora from lowering its current rate, sources added,” Atkinson reports. “Music label insiders suggest Apple — which is sitting on a cash hoard of roughly $137 billion — ought to pay at least the rate set by the Copyright Royalty Board, or about 21 cents per 100 songs streamed.”
MacDailyNews Take: Keep dreaming.
Atkinson reports, “Apple views radio as a way to make better use of its iAds advertising platform. An Apple iRadio product would be ad supported. The music labels, for their part, want an upfront fee and a percentage of that ad revenue in addition to the streaming fees, said sources… Apple is considering a launch of iRadio as part of a bundle along with iMatch, which allows iTunes users to make their music available on all iOS devices.”
MacDailyNews Take: She likely means “iTunes Match,” Apple’s subscription scan and match music service.
Read more in the full article here.
“Apple delayed the start of an online radio service to compete with Pandora Media Inc. after talks with music labels stalled,” Andy Fixmer and Adam Satariano confirm in a report for Bloomberg, citing “four people with knowledge of the situation.”
“The company still seeks to start the advertising-supported radio service by the end of the year, said the people, who asked for anonymity because the plans haven’t been made public,” Fixmer and Satariano report.
MacDailyNews Take: When everyone finally arrive at the terms, as long as “The 1975” are on it, we’ll be good to go. (It’s all we’re playing lately. Blast away if that’s your wont.)
Related articles:
Apple’s ‘iRadio’ imminent? ‘Radio Buy Buttons’ found in iOS 6.1 – February 5, 2013
Analyst: No ‘Apple Television’ this year, but ‘iRadio’ on the way – January 3, 2013
Apple’s iTunes radio should pump up heat on Spotify, not Pandora – December 3, 2012
Analyst: Apple to launch ad-supported ‘iRadio’ music streaming service next year, before ‘Apple iTV’ – December 3, 2012