If that was the case they could have just passed some handling fees to the indie artists -that would still be much more reasonable than the fees that the artist

If that was the case they could have just passed some handling fees to the indie artists -that would still be much more reasonable than the fees that the artists would have to pay to a publisher. I think the record companies -still in the process of understanding and adjusting to the new business model that Spotify established- pushed for this, one way or the other, to ensure that Spotify doesn't become a competitor like Amazon became to book publishers.