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US: Spotify begins label licensing talks

By  |  March 24, 2019
Spotify is in early stages of high-stakes licensing talks with music rights owners that will affect its profit margins for years to come, the Financial Times reports, citing people familiar with the matter.

The New York-listed streaming service must cut deals with Vivendi-owned Universal Music, Sony Music and Warner Music, which combined control two-thirds of Spotify’s catalogue.

The talks, which typically go on for several months or even longer, are in “very early stages”, according to people familiar with the situation. Rather than strike new deals, the two sides could also extend their current arrangements for another year.

But the talks come at a tricky time for Spotify, which has faced fresh criticism from the music industry in recent weeks. Spotify is appealing a US court decision that would give songwriters a big pay rise from music streaming on its platform.

Full Content: Financial Times

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