Complaint Filed with FTC Against Spotify Over Audiobook Bundling

The National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) has lodged a formal complaint with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against Spotify, alleging that the streaming service’s recent audiobook bundle offering has led to a decrease in royalty payments to songwriters. The NMPA claims that Spotify’s bundling of audiobooks with its subscription service constitutes a reduction in the value of music streams, thereby diminishing the royalties owed to creators.

According to the NMPA, this strategy is not only detrimental to songwriters but also deceptive to consumers, as it may have been implemented without adequate disclosure or consent. The association has estimated that this could cost songwriters and publishers $150 million over the next year. David Israelite of NMPA voiced at NMPA‘s Annual Meeting in New York “Spotify has declared war on songwriters. Our response shall be all-encompassing”

The complaint also highlights concerns regarding Spotify’s compliance with the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act. It suggests that the company may have automatically transitioned its premium users to the new bundle without offering a clear option to opt out or maintain a music-only subscription.

In response to these allegations, Spotify has defended its practices, stating that its approach to offerings and pricing is standard within the industry and that users are notified well before any changes to their subscriptions.

This dispute comes on the heels of a lawsuit filed by the Mechanical Licensing Collective against Spotify earlier this year, further intensifying the ongoing conflict between the streaming service and music publishers

Spotify has received much criticism recently for both increasing prices of subscription premiums and lack of sufficient payment to content producers on its platform.

The post Complaint Filed with FTC Against Spotify Over Audiobook Bundling appeared first on EDMTunes.