Billboard reports that Apple Music’s new relationship with Dubset Media Holdings allows the streaming service to play DJ mixes and mash-ups without worrying about the copyright issues that usually prevent those items from being streamed legally. How? Dubset will ensure that the artists included in any such mixes are properly compensated with MixBank, “a proprietary technology” that can apparently “analyze a remix or long-form DJ mix file, identify recordings inside the file, and properly pay both record labels and music publishers.”
Steve Aoki applauded the move. “Remixes are a huge part of our culture,” he told Billboard. “They allow DJs and fans to put our own creative spin on music. Apple working with Dubset now is a really simple solution to something traditionally complex, and [it] allows everyone to make money on this content for the first time.”
Roland Leesker, CEO of Get Physical Records, suggested that Apple’s step will lead to noticeable increases in royalty payments, noting “the new revenue and royalty potential once this content moves to authorized music services is enormous based on the amount of this content that's already being streamed without approvals and royalties.”
In addition, Apple’s partnership with Dubset Media will in theory allow it to circumvent a problem that haunted SoundCloud. In recent years, labels repeatedly took action to remove mixes and mash-ups from the platform if that material included unlicensed songs from their artists.
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