Pop superstar Taylor Swift‘s sway in the music industry is immense, especially when you consider that her latest album, 2014’s “1989“, sold 1.287 million copies during its first week—the highest first week sales since Eminem‘s “The Eminem Show” in 2002. Her recent decision to withhold said album from Apple‘s upcoming Apple Music streaming service was thus one Apple did not take lightly.
Swift provided this missive to Apple, taking issue with their decision to not pay artists, etc. for plays incurred during a planned three-month free trial period for the service. Her decision was enough to get Apple to relent and change its policy so that royalties will now be paid during said trial period. That said, at least one band views her move as cash grab/PR stunt for herself. Liferuiner said:
“Hey guys Taylor Swift just pulled a publicity stunt for her new record which has everyone talking about her at the same time to create free PR for herself…crazy it worked. She didn’t do it for you or your band…she did it for herself. Millionaires making more millions.”