As artists and record labels clamor over YouTube payouts, some iare skeptical that Google’s subscription service can change the equation.
As artists and record labels clamor over YouTube payouts, some iare skeptical that Google’s subscription service can change the equation.
Since the freewheeling, Napster days of digital music, artists and labels have been forced to accept some very hard realities about their industry. From peer-to-peer piracy to the life-preserver Apple tossed out to record companies in the form of iTunes, to the rise and dominance of streaming services, upheaval has been a mainstay of music’s relationship with computers. But the Silicon Valley side of the equation has had to swallow a difficult truth as well, and one that’s inimical to a tech industry built on advertising: In music—as with other kinds of creative and professional pursuits online—paying subscribers are a far more sustainable source of revenue than free users who look at ads (which, in any case, they are increasingly trying to block).
