NYPost: Apple paying major music labels up to $150 million for rights to music on iCloud
The New York Post is reporting that three separate sources have told them Apple is paying the big four music labels between $100-150 million for the rights to distribute their music through the new iCloud service, which is set to debut on Monday. Their sources say that each label will get between $25-50 million depending on the number of tracks iTunes users are storing.
On Tuesday, Apple issued a press release stating that Steve Jobs will unveil the iCloud service on June 6. iCloud is widely expected to be a cloud-based digital locker that allows users to stream any music they own to any device they own. Apple has been aggressively working on deals with the major music labels for a while now, first getting Warner, then EMI and Sony to get on board. The last holdout, Universal, is rumored to have signed with Apple late last week. With up to a $50 million signing bonus, any cash-strapped music label would be crazy not to accept Apple's offer.
