Spotify and Warner Music Group (WMG) have signed a multi-year agreement covering both recorded music and music publishing, with WMG owning labels behind artists like Dua Lipa, Coldplay, and Ed Sheeran.
The firms stated in a news statement that “the new deal will help deliver new fan experiences, a deeper music and video catalogue, further paid subscription tiers, and differentiated content bundles.”
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek announced a new premium tier called “superfan” with additional features, following years of teasing about a hi-fi tier.
The Spotify-WMG agreement comes after a comparable one that was revealed two weeks ago between the music streaming service and Universal Music Group (UMG).
Spotify can capitalise on these new deals by introducing new products and services to attract more subscribers and boost revenue.
Spotify and Warner Music Group are collaborating to accelerate execution in 2025, aiming to make paid music subscriptions more appealing and support artists and songwriters worldwide.
According to the press announcement, Ek stated, “2020 is a year of accelerated execution for Spotify, and our partners at Warner Music Group share our commitment to rapid innovation and sustained investment in our leading music offerings.” “By working together, we’re expanding the possibilities for audiences around the world—supporting songwriters and artists alike while increasing the appeal of paid music subscriptions.”
With Warner Chappell Music, which has a collection of more than a million copyrights in the US and several other countries, the agreement establishes a direct licensing approach.
In the announcement, WMG CEO Robert Kyncl stated, “This significant agreement unlocks additional collaboration that broadens the music ecosystem while delivering new benefits for artists, songwriters, and fans.” “It’s a significant step towards our goal of better alignment between streaming services and rights holders. As we promote growth, impact, and innovation, we look forward to working with Spotify to raise the value of music.
The new agreement’s financial details were not made public.
Spotify announced its fourth-quarter results on Tuesday, marking the company’s first full year of profitability since its founding 17 years ago.
It generated a record operating income of €477 million ($509.48 million) during the quarter, which helped it reach €1.4 billion ($1.495 billion) for the fiscal year 2024. The greatest Q4 net gain in Spotify’s history, 35 million new monthly active users (MAUs) increased the company’s total to 675 million.
