NEW YORK, Nov. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Global music
and entertainment streaming service TIDAL announced today a number
of new updates to the product experience for music fans and artists
alike. The enhancements deliver on TIDAL's mission to create a
sustainable, artist-first and fan-centric business model for the
music industry and include a new free tier and enhanced paid
subscription tiers, direct-to-artist payments, fan-centered
royalties, and more. With support from the vast majority of our
record label and distributor partners, TIDAL is going beyond
current industry standards to make royalty payments more
transparent for artists and rights holders.
"We're building a platform that values art, artists, and
culture, and for the first time opening the platform experience up
to a wider group of fans with the free tier," said Jesse Dorogusker, Head of TIDAL. "TIDAL is also
supporting artists with fairer earning terms and quicker payments,
and fans are getting a better way to support their favorite
artists. These offerings are the first step of many, and we're
excited to collaborate with artists to evolve our tools to help
them continue to grow and create on their own terms."
Better Options for Music Fans
TIDAL now offers three
membership options for fans to choose from: TIDAL Free
(US-only), TIDAL HiFi, and TIDAL HiFi Plus. Both HiFi tiers are
available in all of TIDAL's 61 international markets with plans to
extend the free tier to other markets in the future. All tiers have
access to the same catalog of over 80 million songs, videos and
expertly curated playlists, with each tier having its own set
of perks outlined below.
- TIDAL Free (US-only): For the first time,
music fans can now try TIDAL at no cost, with access to our entire
music catalog and playlists, with limited interruptions.
- TIDAL HiFi: At $9.99/month, this tier offers interruption-free
access to HiFi sound quality. With TIDAL HiFi, members have offline
capabilities, access to features like TIDAL Connect and My
Activity, which provides individualized daily listening
insights.
- TIDAL HiFi Plus: For $19.99/month, HiFi Plus features everything the
HiFi tier offers, in addition the introduction of fan-centered
royalties and direct-to-artist payments. HiFi Plus will also
continue to provide access to the best-in-class immersive sound
formats (Dolby Atmos Music & Sony 360 Audio Recordings) and
Master Quality Authenticated (MQA), alongside early access to
exclusive offerings and future features.
New Ways for Artists to Get Paid Based on Fan
Streaming
Creating tools that prioritize the artist
experience is central to TIDAL's new transparency and revenue
features, including:
- Direct-to-artist payments: Beginning today, TIDAL
will launch monthly direct-to-artist payments. This innovative
program will give artists access to an additional payment stream,
so they can benefit directly from their biggest fans on TIDAL. Each
month, a percentage of HiFi Plus subscribers' membership fees will
be directed towards their top streamed artist, which they will see
in their activity feed. This direct-to-artist payment is in
addition to their streaming royalties.
- Fan-centered royalties: Starting in 2022, TIDAL is
taking a different approach on royalties. In this new model,
royalties attributed to HiFi Plus subscribers will not be
aggregated. Rather, royalties will be paid based on the actual
streaming activity of individual HiFi Plus subscribers as opposed
to the industry accepted method of aggregating streams, empowering
fans to play a larger role in the success of their favorite
artists.
TIDAL has linked up with Square, Cash App, and PayPal to help
ensure quick and seamless payouts to artists globally. TIDAL also
has partnered with leading distributors CD Baby, DistroKid, Stem,
Symphonic, and Tunecore, with Equity Distribution and Vydia
launching soon, to ensure artists sharing music through those
platforms are able to receive their payments via in-platform
registration seamlessly.
All artists must opt-in to access direct artist payouts, either
through TIDAL's invite-only direct registration option or through
one of TIDAL's distribution partners. TIDAL will continue to
open access to the program in the coming months, with information
being made available for Artists with music available on
TIDAL at TIDAL.com/ForArtists.
"TIDAL has been with me since the beginning, providing emerging
artists, like myself, with resources to pursue my passion," said
Sam Austins, singer and songwriter. "It's exciting to see them
continue to evolve their streaming platform to better support
artists and their fans with new features like direct-to-artist
payments. TIDAL was founded by artists, so the importance of
economic empowerment is ingrained in what they do, no matter what
stage of your career you're in."
Music fans can learn more about TIDAL and subscribe to
TIDAL.com.
About TIDAL
TIDAL is an artist-led global music and
entertainment streaming platform that aims to create a sustainable,
artist-first and fan-centric business model for the music industry.
With innovative experimental features like direct-to-artist
payments and fan-centered royalties, TIDAL is empowering artists to
redefine their place in the music industry.
Available in 61 countries, the streaming service has more than
80 million songs and 350,000 high-quality videos in its catalog,
along with original video series, podcasts, thousands of expertly
curated playlists, and artist discovery via TIDAL Rising. TIDAL is
available in Free, HiFi, and HiFi Plus tiers, with the HiFi Plus
membership offering access to immersive audio features like Master
Quality Authenticated (MQA) recordings, Dolby Atmos Music, and
Sony's 360 Reality Audio recordings.
For more information, please visit www.tidal.com.
About Square, Inc.
Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ) builds
tools to empower businesses and individuals to participate in the
economy. Sellers use Square to reach buyers online and in person,
manage their business, and access financing. Individuals use Cash
App to spend, send, store, and invest money. And TIDAL is a global
music and entertainment platform that expands Square's purpose of
economic empowerment to artists. Square, Inc. has offices in
the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, Ireland, Spain, Norway, and the UK.
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