Taylor Swift 1; Apple 0: Tech giant backs down over payment policy after Shake It Off singer threatens to block album

Apple Music has backed down on its payment policy a day after singer Taylor Swift said she would refuse to let the tech giant stream her album 1989. 

 

The Shake It Off singer had written an open letter to the company saying she would withhold her record in light of plans to offer a three month free trial to subscribers, meaning artists would not be paid. 

 

"I find it to be shocking, disappointing, and completely unlike this historically progressive and generous company… Three months is a long time to go unpaid, and it is unfair to ask anyone to work for nothing,” she wrote. 

 

"We don't ask you for free iPhones. Please don't ask us to provide you with our music for no compensation."

 

Apple Music boss Eddy Cue responded almost immediately, saying “we hear you” and promising that artists would be paid throughout the trial period. 

 

https://twitter.com/cue/status/612824947342229504

 

https://twitter.com/cue/status/612824775220555776 

 

Swift responded with her own tweet saying she was "elated and relieved".

 

https://twitter.com/taylorswift13/status/612841136311390209

 

Apple Music launches on 30 June. It will cost $9.99 (£6.30) per month in the US for one person or $14.99 for families.

 

It is not the first time Swift has spoken out against streaming music – she pulled her entire catalogue from Spotify last November and had refused to offer 1989 on streaming services, saying the business had "shrunk the numbers of paid album sales drastically".

 

1989 is one of the biggest-selling albums of 2014.