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Earlier this week, singer-songwriter Anton Newcombe of The Brian Jonestown Massacre took to Twitter to rant about the Apple Music terms he had allegedly been offered by Apple, accusing the company of threatening to take his music off iTunes if he did not agree to the three-month free trial period that's been a sticking point with indie artists.

Calling Apple a "satanic corporation," (and mistakenly tweeting at an "Apple Official" Twitter account not run by Apple) Newcombe said Apple offered him a deal that required him to provide his music for free for three months, and when he asked what would happen if he refused, he was told his music would be removed from sale on iTunes.

The biggest company on earth wants to use my work to make money for 3 months and pay me nothing - of I say no,I'm banned - antonnewcombe (@antonnewcombe) June 17, 2015
Newcombe's claims have been circulating around the Internet for the last several days, and as of yesterday, they prompted a reply from Apple. An Apple representative spoke to Rolling Stone and said the company has not been threatening to remove artists' music from iTunes for refusing Apple Music deals. "It will not be taken off," said the representative.

Newcombe's representative did not respond to a request for comment following Apple's statement, but Newcombe has continued his tirade against Apple Music on Twitter.

Apple plans to offer consumers a three-month trial for Apple Music, but during that period, the company will pay no royalties or fees to artists and labels. Several indie labels have spoken out against the move, claiming the trial period will "literally put people out of business."

Following the free trial period, Apple will give labels a 71.5 percent split of subscription revenue in the United States and will pay out a slightly higher percentage outside of the U.S., but labels say the numbers do little to alleviate the sting of three months of no royalty payments at all.

Apple Music will launch in a week in a half, going live on June 30 as part of an upcoming iOS 8.4 update. The service will be free for the first three months, after which it will cost $9.99 for individuals and $14.99 for families up to 6.

Article Link: Apple Not Coercing Indie Artists Into Apple Music Deals With iTunes Removal Threats
 
Regardless of this kerfuffle, Apple are devaluing music by offering it free for three months, which is sad. Not paying the musicians, either, is spitting in their face.

I can understand why some musicians, like The Beatles and Taylor Swift, don't wish to be party to this degradation.

Perhaps Apple should offer the contents of the App Store and the Mac App Store plus In-App Purchases free for everyone for three months. Then we'll see if they're prepared to eat their own dog food.
 
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I still don't get why Apple pushed for a 3 month trial period instead of a 1 month trial.

If you use it for 30 days, you will know whether you want to keep it or not.

An extra 2 months of 'free-time' that Apple cannot collect revenue or pass onto labels and artists via royalties is completely superfluous and unnecessary.

Just change it back to 1 month and make everyone happier?
 
Regardless of this kerfuffle, Apple are devaluing music by offering it free for three months, which is sad.

I can understand why some musicians, like The Beatles and Taylor Swift, don't wish to be party to this degradation.

Perhaps Apple should offer the contents of the App Store and the Mac App Store plus In-App Purchases free for everyone for three months. Then we'll see if they're prepared to eat their own dog food.

apple to oranges buddy every MONTHLY SERVICE i can think of offer a free trial so this is nothing they cracked up ... furthermore the artist can opt not to have their music up there so....whats to complain about
 
I still don't get why Apple pushed for a 3 month trial period instead of a 1 month trial.

If you use it for 30 days, you will know whether you want to keep it or not.

An extra 2 months of 'free-time' that Apple cannot collect revenue or pass onto labels and artists via royalties is completely superfluous and unnecessary.

Just change it back to 1 month and make everyone happier?

They can't change it to 1 month now. The users will revolt. Also I agree with one forum member's speculation that 1 month is not enough to experience the "human curation" part of Apple Music, so they're offering a 3-month trial instead.
 
Why don't they just opt-in starting in January? Many peoples trials will be over by then, no?

I don't think it will make much of a difference to their bottom line, but it seems like an easy fix?
 
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