Why Every Independent Artist Needs a Personal Brand
July 8, 2026Over the past decades, the music industry has experienced significant changes. Streaming services, social media networks, and online marketing tools have made i...
Spotify 2024: New Royalty Rules
From next year Spotify will change how it pays for some music, and how it deals with artificial streaming. From January:
Spotify will pay a reduced royalty rate for ‘functional’ content, otherwise known as noise content. This is “all non-music, non-spoken-word audio,” such as nature or machine sounds.
To be royalty-bearing at all, such functional content must be more than two minutes long. If you have noise content under 2 minutes and want to update your assets please get in touch via support@stdigital.in
At a date not yet confirmed, Spotify will:
Only start paying revenue for any track of any genre once it has attracted at least 1,000 streams from a minimum of 50 unique listeners in the preceding 12 month period.
Levy a fee of €10 per month per track if they conclude that more than 90% of its streams were generated artificially.
New Rules for Noise Tracks
The Issue:
Some people have been cleverly stacking short, repetitive noise tracks like this to get more streaming revenue. The stacked tracks boost streaming revenue unfairly.
Spotify's Fix:
Spotify is setting some new rules. Now, noise tracks need to be at least two minutes long to earn money. Also, they're going to pay less for noise streams compared to genuine music.
Artist's Take:
If you're into making noise tracks, consider lengthening them to adhere to these new regulations and maximize your earning potential.
You can read more about artificial streaming here.
