You were right. Thought it was someone pretty big: http://www.billboard.com/articles/n...s-he-earned-just-2500-from-34-million-streams

 

calm down dude, cancel it and get spotify if you like that sort of thing, how hard can it be

this is not the place for endless pointless whining


or maybe it is, but with music

 

There is a shift in Apple philosophy (i pointed it years ago).
Apple is no more a computer maker : they sell A LOT more iPhones than computers.

Before, as Mac user, you where in a "think different" spirit.
Now, you are just "think mainstream" like others.
How many iPhones around you ?

Apple computers now are just iPhones accessories.
And as a Mac user, you are just another Apple user, among millions ppl.

When Apple was an "elite" computer maker, loosing a customer was important.
Nowadays, they don't care : they will replace you in 0.000001 second by a new iPhone user

Do you know some ppl at Apple are already thinking to kill OSX, because Macs are their LAST income sector ?
And it is complicated for them to maintain a synergy between iOS and OSX.

Computers are becoming a niche market, even more desktops.

Apple take it the easy way : they don't care anymore about power/pro users.
After all...they are less than 1% of their computer customers.
And Macs are less than 10% total.

First IQ 2017:
iPhones : 69%
Macs ? 9%...

It is clear enough, i think.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/382260/segments-share-revenue-of-apple/

 

Only thing I like about apple, is that the OS on their phones seem to handle audio much better than Android.

 

That's because they are signed artists and the major share lands in the pockets of their respective labels. Which are majors, thus keeping the biggest share. Currently, the average payout for this type of artist is around 0,0035 ct per stream.
If you're an unsigned artist and own your music, meaning if you're the artist, producer, writer and publisher, and collect all the royalties (sound recording royalties, public performance royalties and mechanical royalties), it's far more.
And if you compare it to what a major radio station pays (6,- per 50000 reach = 0,00012 $) it's not bad at all.
A lot has happened in the recent past, so it might be a good idea to do a little research because as I see it, there are many opportunities for us as artists to get a serious payout - the situation is completely different from what it was five years ago.

 

big fishes don't smell like roses, that's an evidence, let keep you away from customer dependance

 

So are you saying platinum and gold selling artists like Portishead, who wrote fucking genius music and put out amazing albums, none of indie musicians would ever think to write, are getting screwed while indie guys are not? Just because they are signed to a major label? Average indie Joe shall not be entitled to better deals just because he's unsigned. That just doesn't make any goddamn sense.

Quite the contrary, Portishead - these are the guys who should be making fortunes from streaming their legendary fucking music, none of which average indie Joe could ever write. They are the real talent, the real work, the real achievement. Yet indie Joe gets a better deal? Bullshit I call it. It's unfair and undeserved. Geoff Barrow is right. Portishead deserve a better deal. Nothing to argue about.

7000$ for one million plays for an indie guy and 2500$ for 34 million fucking streams for a Portishead member? Wrong math, man. No matter how you look at it, these numbers are just wrong.

So, I guess, little has changed since Steve Albini wrote that article in 1993. Labels keep screwing the bands, only now, in the age of Internet, the streaming services add insult to injury.

 

Last edited: Mar 11, 2017

After working for Apple for 5 years, it is very difficult to believe that a rep said this to you. This IS 180 degrees away from their philosophy. You should have simply asked for his name and reported him. End of story. When I worked as a Genius for them, it was absolutely sickening how much crap we had to take off of customers and were not allowed to say a thing. Why start some big anti-Apple issue on a forum? I cannot even tell you how many times I have been screwed over by AT&T. Just report the guy and move on. It isn't fair to all of the GOOD reps who really try and help. Just my 2 cents.

 

Agreed!
I can understand venting on the forum. But yeah, you haven't really given Apple a chance to resolve beyond this one session with the I-Tunes rep. I posted earlier up what I felt would be appropriate, try another rep and then, if still not satisfactorily answered, complaint department.
There are bad "apples" everywhere in most jobs.