The article seemed a bit tedious and overwrought. All that aside, for me it raised the question, "how do the musicians get paid?"

As a musician, this is a matter of great interest. The answer: "Spotify shares it 50/50" according to the first article I found that answered the question.

Last time I checked, Apple was paying 70%; however, if you're not on a major label, you'll likely get to iTunes through a third party such as CDbaby; they pay 91% of that 70%. Even so, 63.7% is better than 50%.

Addendum: as the article I mentioned describes, it may actually be worse than that, because payments aren't on a track basis, but rather more like the airplay payments that BMI and ASCAP pay (in which you only get paid if you have lot of spins).

http://gramtone.wordpress.com/2009/03/20/spotify-a-loss-for-...