When you pay 99 cents to download a song, how much of that actually goes to the artist?

According to the link below and its calculations, the artist gets 10 cents of every 99 cent song. The producer gets a quarter of a cent, and from my guess, the rest goes to Apple. Which, like your_uncle_dodge said, means the artist is totally ripped off.

If we're talking about iTunes, it's true the artist doesn't get much, but don't blame Apple. Their 34 cent share is mostly spent to cover the credit card transactions according to this link (which quotes the WSJ): http://inluminent.com/2003/10/21/itunes-for-window...

Of course if you buy more than one song in a transaction, then it becomes more profitable for them. But the real bulk of the 99 cents is going to the record labels.

How much the artist makes depends on the deal an artist has made with their label. If they're independent and sell through a site like CD Baby, then they get a much higher percentage.

The artist already received a flat fee for however many months the download company is using it. In short, the artist gets ripped off.

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99c can't really be shared up that much, so basically the artist gets nothing. compare 10 measly cents to the millions they make touring and promoting. that's why i download music for free (cough cough limewire) i ain't giving apple a cent. i already gave them $149 for my ipod.