Music streaming site Jamendo has revealed they paid over £1 million to independent musicians in 2016.
The site and mobile app allow users to browse and stream songs from a base of over 500,000 artists, and profits are generated through their licencing scheme.
Tracks from Jamendo have featured in a number of high profile advertising campaigns, including Sony, Ford and Nestlé, with up to 65% of revenue shared with the artists.
Selling licences for anything from personal or YouTube use, to large-scale advertising, the range in options aims to give the company momentum as the streaming industry continues to grow.
“From the very beginning, the idea was to gather a community of independent music and help create value around it,” said Martin Guerber, music and content manager at Jamendo, who explained how the company fits in among streaming heavy hitters like Spotify or iTunes.
“Our model is quite different than Spotify’s or iTunes’,” he continued, “because it’s mainly focused on providing a free music discovery experience and free services for artists, then using the licensing model to generate revenue and help us keep supporting independent musicians.”
As the popularity of free streaming continues to become the consumer norm, the worry for independent artists is that their music will be heard, but not paid for. However, Martin believes that while free music is becoming more popular, so too is its use in the commercial market.
“The need for music in videos or shops/public places has never been higher,” he said, “In 2017 we are looking to enhancing the artist experience and bring creators more services in order to promote and monetize their music better.”
