SoundCloud is testing user-centric systems and has reported that artists earn 60% more through the fan-powered royalties system.
A study of 118,000 SoundCloud musicians found 56% earned more with fan-powered royalties, with smaller artists benefiting the most.
The report claims artists can double their income by building their superfan base to 2-3% of their audience.
Streaming services need to build tools to help artists engage with superfans.
The switch from pro-rata to user-centric systems requires industry-wide agreement, but SoundCloud's FPR system is starting to provide more data.
Tidal and Deezer also have user-centric plans, but bigger streaming services are cautious about the switch.
