Apple proposes new royalty structure for streaming music services

Apple’s suggested royalty structure would make accounting simpler and more transparent, but it would also make it more costly to run a free service, since streaming companies would have to pay a minimum rate, rather than a percentage of revenue. The current system arguably benefits Spotify and YouTube, since their free tiers don’t generate much revenue compared to paid services.

A big double hit for Apple here: First they look better to musicians and the industry, and second they get to screw Spotify.