From Streaming Poverty to Artist Prosperity (The simple 70% Rule That Changes Everything)

Melanie Bainbridge

6 minute read

Here's a fun fact about current streaming economics that should make you slightly angry: if you listen exclusively to brilliant independent Australian artists, most of your subscription money still ends up paying global superstars you probably can’t stand. It's a bit like shopping at your local farmers market but having your money automatically redirected to Coles and Woollies. You. Have. No. Choice.

Welcome to the pro-rata payment system, where mathematical "equity" meets practical insanity to create the perfect artist exploitation machine.

The Pack Music Cooperative has a solution: 70% of your subscription goes directly to the artists you actually listen to. Radical, right?

Let me explain how the current system works, because it's genuinely bonkers. Everyone's subscription fees get pooled, and the streaming service takes its cut. Then the pool gets divided based on global streaming percentages, meaning your local indie band has to compete against Drake, Taylor Swift, and the entire K-Pop industrial complex. So even if you exclusively stream underground Australian artists, most of your money flows to whatever's topping the charts in America. Sound fair, huh?

The Pack subverts this insanity completely. Your $10 monthly subscription breaks down really simply: $7 goes directly to artists you stream, $1.50 goes to sector development grants, and $1.50 covers platform operations. If you listen to 10 different Australian artists equally, each gets $0.70 from your subscription. If you're obsessed with one local band and play them exclusively for a month straight, they get the full $7. Your money follows your musical taste instead of global chart dominance.

Imagine that - a system where you actually support the artists you choose to support. This shit is bananas (B.A.N.A.N.A.S!).

Let's talk numbers that should really annoy major labels. If The Pack attracts 5 million subscribers (conservative, considering the 42% interest shown in recent government research), total monthly revenue hits $50 million, with direct artist payments reaching $35 million monthly. That's $420 million annually flowing directly to unsigned Australian artists.

Put that in context: Australia's entire recorded music market generated $717 million in 2024, with current streaming revenue to ALL Australian artists estimated at less than $100 million. The Pack could quadruple the money flowing to Australian musicians while creating a sustainable, community-owned ecosystem. That’s a game changer.

But The Pack's revolution goes beyond payments - it's about cultural connection through "geofenced discovery." Your streaming recommendations prioritise artists from your region first, then state and regional talent, with the rest of Australia third. Instead of algorithms designed to maximise ‘frictionless’ engagement and data harvesting, you get discovery systems designed to build community connections.

When a regional WA listener discovers a First Nations artist from their area, both the cultural and economic impact stays local instead of being extracted by some multinational corporation that views culture as content to be commodified.

Here's what should terrify major streaming service Executives (and how I love to terrify the suits… you know I do): The Pack doesn't need 400 million users to transform artist lives. Smaller, focused platforms can deliver exponentially better outcomes because every subscriber knows their money supports local artists rather than global shareholders. There are no major label intermediaries skimming profits, surplus funds get invested in local ecosystem development, and focused curation elevates deserving artists who'll never achieve global streaming numbers.

It's the difference between a giant over-chlorinated pool where everyone drowns and a lovely little pond where everyone thrives.

Under current systems, artists need millions of streams to earn minimum wage while competing against every artist globally for algorithmic scraps. Under The Pack's model, artists can build sustainable careers from dedicated local fan bases. Instead of needing 10+ million annual streams for basic survival, 1,000 dedicated fans paying $7/month could generate upwards of $50,000 annually. That’s a real supplementary income. Significantly better than the $7200 median wage that the vast majority of Australian independent musicians are currently earning. Instead of competing against the entire global music machine, artists compete primarily against local and regional talent within supportive community frameworks. Success comes from genuine community connection rather than viral moments engineered by major label marketing departments.

The Pack's business model extends beyond individual subscriptions to Australia's 100,000 OneMusic-licensed businesses. Business subscriptions at $50/month could generate millions more while creating community discovery experiences. Imagine walking into a Perth café and hearing music by the band from down the street, with easy access to their catalogue and upcoming shows. That's cultural development through technology, not cultural extraction for corporate profit. That’s community.

The Music Australia research showed particularly high enthusiasm among First Nations Australians, reflecting profound need for better Indigenous representation and platform control. The Pack offers transformative potential by featuring Indigenous creators prominently in discovery algorithms, ensuring user-centric payments flow directly to First Nations artists, creating partnerships with Indigenous media and communities, and providing cultural context alongside music. When First Nations artists control their digital distribution, cultural sovereignty becomes technological sovereignty.

Despite cost-of-living pressures, musically-engaged young people are willing to invest in music experiences they value. The Pack appeals to youth values around supporting local culture over corporate extraction, authentic community connection over algorithmic manipulation, democratic participation over passive consumption, and cultural investment over mere entertainment. Young people understand that every streaming dollar is a political choice between community empowerment and corporate extraction.

Regional Australians showed high enthusiasm for an Aussie only streaming service, likely reflecting their underserved status in current music ecosystems. With fewer live music opportunities and greater reliance on commercial radio that ignores unsigned artists, regional audiences crave stronger connections to homegrown music. The Pack's geofenced discovery means regional subscribers get curated access to local talent, including artists from their own communities. Community pride drives subscription rates when listeners understand their payments fund local music initiatives.

The Pack needs just $500,000 to complete development and launch. That investment could generate $420 million in annual artist payments, $90 million in annual sector development contribution, and $510 million in total annual impact. That's over 1,000% return on investment - surely the most efficient cultural investment in government history, and more than all State and Territory music investment combined.

When artists own streaming platforms, governance becomes genuinely democratic. Artists vote on platform policies instead of having them imposed by distant executives optimising for shareholder value.

Let’s not continue feeding the machine that turns musical passion into executive profit margins while local creators struggle below poverty lines. Let’s invest in a platform that could generate $420 million annually for unsigned Australian artists while pioneering cooperative alternatives to corporate streaming monopolies.

The 70% rule isn't about payments - it's about power. When artists get 70% of revenue instead of $0.003 per stream, when communities control recommendations instead of being manipulated by engagement algorithms, when profits get reinvested locally instead of extracted globally, everything changes.

The revolution starts with simple mathematics: 70% direct to artists, 15% to sector development, 15% to operations. The rest is just politics.