So even though listener 2 didn't listen to Ed Sheeran, their money still goes towards him. If streaming services switched to a 'User Centric' system instead, the $10 a month goes to ONLY the artists you've listened to in that given month. Now under a User Centric system, $10 goes to Ed Sheeran and $10 goes to Tame Impala in this example. Back in the day, If you bought a CD, all money goes to that artist/record label associated with that release, not all other artists in the record store.