Apple, Dubset Media sign deal enabling more mix/remix content on Apple Music

Much of this content has been unavailable because of the complex copyright and royalty situations created by mixing, Billboard said on Tuesday. A DJ mix with 25 to 30 songs might require paying not just the same number of record labels, but two to 10 publishers per track.

Partnering with Dubset should help circumvent this problem in two ways: the firm's licensing deals with over 14,000 labels and publishers, and proprietary apps known as MixBank and MixScan. Together, the tools can analyze a music file and determine where royalties are owed — files submitted to Dubset must pass through this screening, which is also used to enforce any limits demanded by rights holders.

Apple will have to pay Dubset for access to content, from which point the latter will use some of the money to handle royalties.

The deal could help Apple better compete in the world of streaming electronic dance music, where it faces competition not just from Spotify but genre-specific services like Beatport, which introduced an iOS app roughly a year ago.