Following their plans to increase artist royalties late last year, Apple Music is finally implementing changes to increase royalty shares for artists who utilize spatial audio formats like Dolby Atmos on their platform.
Apple’s label partners were updated with the changes in their system, with Spatial-available content receiving royalty rates of up to 10% higher than non-spatial content on the platform. According to the news, these changes will be implemented by January 2024’s month-end royalty payments, and the pro-rate shares for Spatial Available plays will be calculated using a factor of 1.1, while Non-Spatial Available plays will be counted using a factor of 1.
It was reported by 9to5Mac that Apple Music subscribers do not necessarily have to listen to music in any of the Spatial Audio formats for an artist to be rewarded with the additional payout, as the artists will receive the 10% royalty bonus whether or not no one listens to the Spatial version.
In the same announcement, Apple Music also revealed that over 90% of the platform’s listeners have utilized the Spatial Audio features of the platform –– with plays for music in the format having tripled in the last two years. The number of Spatial Audio tracks on the platform has increased by nearly 5,000% since its launch and has otherwise doubled in the last year alone.
Since its launch in June 2021, Spatial Audio (with support for Dolby Atmos) has been available for free to all Apple Music subscribers, with the number of Spatial Audio tracks on the platform increased by nearly 5,000% since its launch, and has otherwise doubled in the last year alone.
On the other hand, other streaming platforms such as Amazon Music have also adopted the feature of Spatial Audio. Their major competitor, Spotify, has yet to include such a feature but is rumored to be exploring a “Supremium” tier that aims to target audiophiles with 24-bit Lossless music and AI-powered playlist features.