Europe's Legislators To Back Artists In Demanding Better Pay And Transparency From Spotify: Politico

In a move to better support European music creators and artists, a key lawmaker in the European Parliament's culture committee is pushing for greater transparency and fairer remuneration from music streaming platforms like Spotify Inc. SPOT, Politico reports.

Regulatory Loopholes: Spanish lawmaker Iban García del Blanco is drafting a report aimed at addressing what he describes as a loophole in regulation. The report, while non-binding, is expected to urge the European Commission to rectify the imbalance in the music industry, where artists feel sidelined by streaming giants.

Streaming Dominance: Streaming has become the primary mode of accessing music, leading to a significant shift in the industry. Spotify, with a 31% global market share in 2021, leads the pack, followed by Apple Inc. AAPL, Amazon AMZN, and Tencent (HKSE: 0700). However, García notes that other platforms, such as TikTok, are also influential and contribute to the changing landscape.

Remuneration and Transparency: The report is expected to focus on the issue of remuneration. Despite the 2019 copyright directive introducing a principle of “appropriate and proportionate remuneration”, the actual earnings of artists and creators have fallen short of expectations. Artists are also calling for more transparency from platforms about their operations and recommendation tools.

Industry Reactions: Olivia Regnier, Spotify's director of EU regulatory affairs, welcomes the debate but questions the premise of a regulatory gap. She also highlights that streaming platforms are not profitable and have limited control over how much money reaches creators. Meanwhile, Véronique Desbrosses, general manager of GESAC, criticizes Spotify’s global expansion strategy, arguing it hampers proper remuneration.

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