Music streaming’s payout model is under a microscope. The industry’s stakeholders — the labels, DSPs, artists, and rights holders — all want more of the pie, but no one can agree on how.

Should we stick with the pro-rata model that pools all streams together? Or move to the user-centric model that some DSPs have tested out? Should longer songs count more than a 30-second audio track? What if that artist you choose to start your music session with gets paid more than an algorithmic play? How can we stop the fraud? Would all these problems get solved if prices increased?.

These questions are all up for debate. As growth slows down, everyone wants more of the pie.

To discuss, I’m joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to break it all down. Here’s everything we discussed:

0:11 How this debate started
4:57 Proposed multiplier model
8:44 Pro-rata vs. fan-centric models
10:34 Factoring streaming duration without fraud
14:12 Will big players budge?
17:15 Monetizing fandom
22:54 What if Spotify raises its prices?
27:57 2024 predictions
30:04 Bloomberg’s Screentime conference

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