Some readers will recall the firestorm of controversy that erupted earlier this year when Apple revealed that they would not be paying out royalties during their Apple Music streaming service’s initial three-month free trial period.
Musicians and their record labels were equally incensed, with the Australian Independent Record Labels Association (AIR), who represent independent labels in Australia, basically giving Apple the middle finger over the slight.
Then, Taylor Swift stepped in the ring. Proving herself to be one of the most powerful people in the music industry, Swift penned an eloquent criticism of Apple, which actually saw the tech giant reversing their decision not to pay musos.
Well, it looks like history is repeating itself, but there’s no Taylor in sight to save us this time. As Digital Music News reports, YouTube Red, the video streaming monolith’s controversially named new premium service, is pulling an Apple Music.
YouTube Red launched this week with a one-month free trial and now several of its partners have come out of the woodwork to confirm that YouTube won’t be paying anybody for the duration of their free trial window.
“YouTube has confirmed to us that creators will not receive revenue when a #YouTubeRed user watches your videos during the free trial,” FullScreen, one of YouTube’s largest partners, confirmed within hours of Red’s debut.
Naturally, FullScreen’s tweet confirming the news is riling a lot of people, who are all wondering how YouTube didn’t learn from Apple’s mistake and similarly hurling torrents of complaints at the video streaming pioneer.
However, there could be a break in the clouds. According to a BBC article posted after Red’s launch, YouTube is now planning on paying creators, though neither YouTube nor Google have officially confirmed this.
“Prominent YouTube stars had expressed concerns that they would not be paid if their videos were watched during the month-long free trial on offer,” the BBC reported. “But Google is expected to confirm that is not the case later.”
