The move was announced by Sony boss Rob Stringer, pictured with Beyoncé and Jay-Z (who are not eligible for the scheme) [Source: BBC]

Sony Music has cancelled the debts of thousands of artists who signed to the record label before the year 2000.

It means that many will now, for the first time, earn money when their songs are streamed on services like Spotify and Amazon Music.

Sony said it could not name the eligible acts due to confidentiality agreements, but a source said it would “include household names”.

It said some artists stood to receive “many thousands of dollars per year”.