Deezer is transforming how musicians get paid by extending its artist-friendly royalty model to publishing rights in France. The streaming platform has partnered with Sacem, a French collecting society, to create a more nuanced approach to distributing streaming revenue.
The new system goes beyond simply counting streams. Instead, it introduces a more sophisticated method of calculating royalties that aims to support genuine musical creativity. Tracks will now be evaluated differently, with special considerations for how listeners actually engage with music.
This isn’t a hasty decision. Deezer and Sacem have spent 15 months carefully developing the approach, recognizing the intricate challenges of fairly compensating artists in the digital streaming landscape. The careful planning reflects the complexity of overhauling traditional music payment structures.
One of the most notable changes involves how “noise” tracks are handled. These low-quality or background noise recordings will be excluded from the royalty pool, ensuring that genuine musical creators receive more meaningful compensation. Additionally, the platform will now provide extra financial support to tracks that demonstrate strong listener engagement.
While currently limited to France, the initiative could potentially become a blueprint for how music streaming platforms approach artist compensation in the future.
