Apple’s iTunes and mobile operators including Vodafone have agreed on royalty rates to pay song writers and music publishers for digital and mobile downloads in UK. Under the terms, Apple and four mobile operators will pay 8 percent of gross revenue, excluding VAT, for all music sold digitally excluding ringtones. A lower 6.5 percent rate was agreed for non-on-demand services such as streaming.
Under a previous deal, song writers and publishers should have received 12 percent but for the last four years this had been temporarily reduced to eight percent. Thursday’s ruling made that reduction permanent.
Mobile operators O2, Orange and T-Mobile are also part of the agreement.
Some more details are in this joint statement.