In a letter sent out to their artist, Apple Music declared that they pay a penny per stream.
"While royalties from streaming services are calculated on a stream share basis, a play still has a value. This value varies by subscription plan and country but averaged $0.01 for Apple Music individual paid plans in 2020. This includes label and publisher royalties," read the note.
While Apple is paying a penny per stream, other services aren't that generous.
Apple Music's recent statement claiming they pay rightsholders a penny per stream proves what we have known all along: paying a penny per stream is doable for streaming companies, including Spotify which currently averages $0.0038 per stream.
— Union of Musicians and Allied Workers (@UMAW_) April 16, 2021
According to the Union of Musicians and Allied Workers, Spotify only pays $.0038 a spin (a little more than a 1/3 a penny), and YouTube is known to pay even less than that.