Apple Music Using Shazam Technology to Compensate Rights Holders in DJ Mixes

Apple Music has announced a major new initiative to upload and compensate rights holders behind DJ mixes.

Since the advent of streaming services, one of the major problems with DJ mixes has been ensuring that every musical element in those mixes is identified and paid for.

Apple Music has unveiled a new process — in cooperation with major and independent labels — whereby it can properly identify and directly pay the rights holders whose music is used within a DJ mix, building on technology from Shazam, which it acquired several years ago.

The tool builds on Shazam technology to “allow Apple Music to properly identify and compensate all of the individual creators involved in making a particular DJ Mix—including any artists behind the music in the mix,” reads a press release.

Apple Music has partnered with Boiler Room, Tomorrowland, Mixmag, Cercle and other institutions to bring mix content to the platform. Techno DJ Charlotte de Witte launches a mix series in July that includes a fitness-specific series.

“Apple Music is the first platform that offers continuous mixes where there’s a fair fee involved for the artists whose tracks are included in the mixes and for the artist making those mixes. It’s a step in the right direction where everyone gets treated fairly,” DJ Charlotte de Witte said in a statement on behalf of Apple. “I’m beyond excited to have the chance to provide online mixes again.”

As part of the rollout, Apple Music is highlighting the thousands of mixes already on the site — including such popular ones as Honey Dijon, Funk Flex, Boiler Room, and from the Tomorrowland festival — as well as bringing in more: Studio K7!’s DJ Kicks archive of mixes will begin coming to the service on Friday (Sept. 10), and Mixmag is bringing its archive of mixes, along with new ones weekly.

“This is a big moment for K7,” said Horst Weidenmueller, founder of Studio K7! “Through the partnership with Apple we finally have a place to celebrate DJ-Kicks with additional 14 editions which haven’t been in the market for over 15 years.”