Ever since Spotify launched in India, it had been in the cross hairs of Warner Music, which had accused the streaming company of “falsely asserting a statutory license”, suing it even before it officially entered one of the biggest entertainment markets in the world. However, that dispute came to an end when the two companies signed a global licensing agreement in January. Now, the companies have renewed that agreement, and along with it, expanded Spotify’s library to include many artists who are in agreements with Warner Music.
Today, after the two companies had been suspected of being out of contract for about 9 months, they jointly announced a renewed version of their global licensing deal.
“Spotify and Warner Music Group are pleased to announce a renewed global licensing partnership,” the brief joint announcement reads. “This expanded deal covers countries where Spotify is available today, as well as additional markets. The two companies look forward to collaborating on impactful global initiatives for Warner artists and songwriters, and working together to grow the music industry over the long term,” the statement adds.
Reps from either companies declined to comment any further, and the financial schematics of this agreement have been kept a secret.
The companies came in contract just a few months ago, when Warner Music agreed to give up the lawsuit on Spotify over its operations in India. Warner Music had made its disregard for Spotify very public, stating that it was engaging in predatory pricing in the region, and the cost of a premium subscription in India cost way less than anywhere else. Still, Spotify maintained the position that an Indian rule permits radio stations to offer songs from Warner Chappell Music, Warner Music’s Indian branch, streaming select tracks from some of Warner Music’s artists.
Today’s announcement will bring several artists’ playlists to the platform, including Bruno Mars, Ed Sheeran, Cardi B, as well as bands like Linkin Park and Coldplay, which had been absent from Spotify India for so far, with the platform offering just a few select songs from them.
This solves a major problem for Spotify, which is competing with Gaana.com, India’s biggest music streaming platform. Gaana recently claimed of 150 million monthly active users, making it by far, the largest streaming player in the country. With the extended library, Spotify may have fixed one of the few things holding it back in the region.
