SoundCloud is making some changes to the music streaming platform. Introducing a new pay model called “fan-powered royalties,” independent artists will now be paid based on their listeners instead of the number of streams they receive on their music.
The new payout model will put a deeper reliance on an artist’s fanbase. Moreover, instead of focusing on the number of plays an artist receives, SoundCloud will base the pay on listener’s subscriptions or advertising revenue.
The music streaming application made the official announcement on the pay model change on their website. SoundCloud CEO, Michael Weissman spoke about the new payout model.
“Many in the industry have wanted this for years. We are excited to be the ones to bring this to market to better support independent artists,” Weissman said. “SoundCloud is uniquely positioned to offer this transformative new model due to the powerful connection between artists and fans that takes place on our platform.”
He continues, “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.”
SoundCloud expects fan-powered royalties to help artists create deeper connections with fans. In addition, this new payout method can help to reflect feedback and create transparency for independent artists’ among their fanbase.
Fan-powered royalties will begin to take effect on April 1, 2021. Therefore, to learn more about the new payout model, you can visit SoundCloud’s fan-powered royalties website.
