In getting her way, Swift has arguably validated her spot on Forbes’ power index…
Whether or not ‘most powerful’ lists like those published by Forbes mean anything in the real world is not often put to test. However, with Taylor Swift, named number 64 on the list of the ‘World’s Most Powerful Women’, taking issue with one of the biggest companies on the planet, we’ve given a rare opportunity to see if bank translates into spank.
With the launch of Apple Music (coming soon to this region), Cupertino has set its sights on capturing another market: streaming music. Any such move by Apple should be taken deadly seriously by the competition (in this case, the most likely target is Spotify), because Apple has serious form in taking good ideas and making them great. The iPod wasn’t a new invention, nor was the iPad. There were plenty of touchscreen phones before the iPhone.
But it was the launch of Apple Music which got up Swift’s nose: three months of free music, sure to entice eager fans in, was up for grabs. Problem is, Apple was giving away what she determined was not theirs to give. It would not pay royalties to the artists whose music was being so generously offered to the public.
It took just days after Swift expressed her opprobrium before Apple rolled over, admitted the faux pas and changed its policy. Musicians will now be paid for their product streamed over the new service. Apple Music comes bundled with the latest OS releases, and will also be available on Android devices and Apple TV. Users need to sign up for the free service, and at the end of the 3 month period will be charged a monthly fee which is rumoured to be A$11.99 per month.
Forbes ranked 25-year-old entertainer Swift for the first time on its 2015 Most Powerful Women list, at number 64. She is the youngest on that list and Forbes estimated her 2014 earnings at $81 million.
Apple is the world’s most valuable company and the first to surpass US$700-billion in market capitalisation, a milestone it achieved in February.
