YouTube accounts for 25% of all the music streamed online and without it, 85% of users who listen to music online would be forced to use a service that offers lower (or no) financial benefits to the musicians, according to a report from the company last year.
- But that's not enough for the music labels whose clients' work is streamed on YouTube — now they're going after the company claiming it isn't paying them enough to stream their songs, per WashPost. YouTube pays musicians an estimated $1 per 1,000 song plays, while Apple and Spotify pay $7.
- The details, from WashPost: "Music labels accuse YouTube of using a legal loophole to pay less for songs than traditional music-streaming sites, calling YouTube the biggest threat since song piracy crippled the industry in the early 2000s."
- What's next: The EU is going to release new rules later in the year regulating how YouTube handles and pays musicians for their work.