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==Anti-consumer practices==
==Anti-consumer practices==


===Fake Artists and Playlist Manipulation===
===Fake artists and playlist manipulation===


*Perfect Fit Content (PFC) Program:
*Perfect Fit Content (PFC) Program:


::An internal initiative to seed playlists with AI generated or low cost music (''e.g., ambient, jazz. The velvet sundown'') from Swedish and English  producers. These tracks replaced human artists to reduce royalty payouts.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=The truth about Spotify |url=https://www.honest-broker.com/p/the-ugly-truth-about-spotify-is-finally}}</ref><ref name=":2">
::An internal initiative to seed playlists with AI generated or low cost music (''e.g., ambient, jazz. The velvet sundown'') from Swedish and English  producers. These tracks replaced human artists to reduce royalty payouts.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=The truth about Spotify |url=https://www.honest-broker.com/p/the-ugly-truth-about-spotify-is-finally}}


*Fake Artist Networks:
*Fake artist networks:


::Investigators found 20 individuals operating under 500 aliases (''e.g., Trumpet Bumblefig, Vattio Bud. The velvet sundown.'' ) generating millions of streams. One obscure Swedish jazz artist outperformed Grammy winning albums.<ref name=":2" />. The velvet sundown is an ai generation band that produced 80s rock they have gained
::Investigators found 20 individuals operating under 500 aliases (''e.g., Trumpet Bumblefig, Vattio Bud. The velvet sundown.'' ) generating millions of streams. One obscure Swedish jazz artist outperformed Grammy winning albums. {{CitationNeeded}}
 
::Employees claimed that listeners <q>wouldn’t know the difference</q> between authentic and PFC tracks.<ref name=":1" />
*Consumer Deception:
 
::Employees admitted listeners <q>wouldn’t know the difference</q> between authentic and PFC tracks, degrading content quality.<ref name=":2" />
 
===Licensing Violations and Legal Battles===
 
*Unpaid Royalties:
 
::In 2017 Spotify faced a $1.6 billion lawsuit from Wixen Music Publishing for hosting 10,000+ unlicensed songs by artists like Tom Petty and Neil Young.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Spotify Under Fire |url=https://www.recordingacademy.com/advocacy/news/spotify-under-fire-failing-properly-license-music--again |website=Recording Academy}}</ref>
 
*Repeated Non Compliance:


*Playlist manipulation
::Despite a 2015 pledge to fix <q>bad publishing data</q> Spotify’s $43 million settlement (2017) for unpaid mechanical licenses was deemed "inadequate" by industry groups.<ref name=":3" />
::Despite a 2015 pledge to fix <q>bad publishing data</q> Spotify’s $43 million settlement (2017) for unpaid mechanical licenses was deemed "inadequate" by industry groups.<ref name=":3" />
*Bundling Schemes:
*Bundling Schemes:


::The National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) condemned Spotify for bundling music with audiobooks to lower royalty rates, calling it "predatory".
::The National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) criticized Spotify for bundling music with audiobooks to lower royalty rates, calling it a "predatory" practice.{{CitationNeeded}}


===Privacy Violations and Data Misuse===
===Privacy Violations and Data Misuse===

Revision as of 20:26, 17 September 2025

Spotify
Basic information
Founded 2006
Legal structure Public
Industry Audio Streaming
Official website https://spotify.com/

Spotify is a global music-streaming service founded in 2006 in Sweden by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It allows users to stream music, podcasts, and other audio content via a freemium model, offering both free, ad-supported access and premium subscription services.

Anti-consumer practices

Fake artists and playlist manipulation

  • Perfect Fit Content (PFC) Program:
An internal initiative to seed playlists with AI generated or low cost music (e.g., ambient, jazz. The velvet sundown) from Swedish and English producers. These tracks replaced human artists to reduce royalty payouts.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag

Price Rises and Subscription Exploitation

  • Forced Price Increases:
Under pressure from record labels (e.g., Universal Music), Spotify raised U.S. prices by 31% for duo plans and 25% for family plans (2023–2024). Similar rises occurred in 50+ markets.
  • Label Profit Extraction:
Labels pushed for price rises under the guise of "artist fairness," yet retained most revenue. For example, Universal’s streaming revenue grew 8.9% year-over-year in 2024.
Spotify Subcription Price Increase (2023-2024)
Plan Type Price Increase Key Markets Affected
Premium Individual 10% USA UK EU
Premium Duo 31% Global
Premium Family 25% 50+ countries
Student 20% USA Australia

Systemic Exploitation

Despite recent profitability, Spotify relies heavily on price rises, algorithmic manipulation and royalty suppression. These anti consumer practices come out of a profit-driven business model which prioritizes labels and shareholders over artists and listeners. The PFC program epitomizes Spotify's continued fight agianst musicians. Regulatory intervention—like the EU's antitrust actions—remains critical to force transparency and fairness.

Car Thing

Main article: Spotify Car Thing

In 2019, Spotify announced the Car Thing, a device marketed as a voice-controlled interface for selecting music and podcasts while driving.[1] The device was officially launched in the U.S. on February 22, 2022, it cost $89.99 and requires a Spotify Premium subscription plan along with a phone with a mobile data connection to be used.[2] On June 30, 2022, the device went on sale for $50. [3] The company discontinued production of the device in July 27, 2022, citing low demand. A spokesperson told TechCrunch. “Based on several factors, including product demand and supply chain issues, we have decided to stop further production of Car Thing units. Existing devices will perform as intended." [4] In August of 2022, Spotify further reduced the price to $30 in order to sell off all existing stock. [5]

On October 20, 2022, security researchers released a report on how they achieved root on the Car Thing, uncovering how the device could potentially be hacked. Spotify responded on October 21, 2022, saying that the product is unsupported, end-of-life, and therefore no bugs would be accepted pertaining to the product. [6] The product had gone from its launch to "end-of-life" in the span of 8 months.

Screenshot of email from Spotify, sent to Car Thing users.

On May 23rd, 2024, Spotify announced, via email to users, that support for the Car Thing would end in December of that year, rendering the device inoperable after that point.[7]

The Car Thing support page advised Car Thing owners to "contact your state or local waste disposal department to determine how to dispose of or recycle Car Thing in accordance with applicable laws and regulations," rendering the device obsolete. [8] On May 28, 2024 a class action lawsuit was filed against Spotify, due to a lack of refunds offered on the Car Thing. “All of the claims herein arise out of Spotify’s decision to unilaterally and without recourse cut off its support of the Car Thing and announce its plan to terminate its functionality on December 9, 2024,” the lawsuit reads. "Many owners of the Car Thing have complained in public forums and to Spotify about the discontinuance of the product and have requested that Spotify address and remedy the problem by providing a refund, equivalent replacement, or allow the Car Thing to be open sourced for use outside of Spotify’s control. Spotify has stated that it will not refund, or replace, the Car Thing, instead recommending that Consumers “reset your Car Thing to factory settings and safely dispose of your device following local electronic waste guidelines.” [9]

On May 31, 2024, Spotify began offering refunds for the Car Thing.

The Spotify website for Car Thing now reads "Contact customer service by no later than January 14, 2025 to discuss your refund options." [10] The Spotify support web page for Car Thing states that they are discontinuing the hardware product as part of ongoing efforts to streamline their product offerings.[7]

References

  1. ↑ https://newsroom.spotify.com/2021-04-13/spotify-launches-our-newest-exploration-a-limited-release-of-car-thing-a-smart-player-for-your-car/
  2. ↑ https://newsroom.spotify.com/2022-02-22/car-thing-from-spotify-is-now-officially-available-in-the-u-s/
  3. ↑ https://community.spotify.com/t5/Car-Thing/Summer-Sale-Special-89-99/td-p/5412050
  4. ↑ https://techcrunch.com/2022/07/27/spotify-exits-short-lived-car-thing-hardware-play-as-reports-q2-maus-of-433m-offsetting-russia-exit-and-service-outage/
  5. ↑ https://www.androidpolice.com/spotify-car-thing-lowest-price-ever-get-one-still-can/
  6. ↑ https://oddsolutions.github.io/Spotify-Car-Thing-Root/
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 https://x.com/mypussyfarts/status/1793679258105348378?mx=2
  8. ↑ https://support.spotify.com/us/article/car-thing-discontinued/
  9. ↑ https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/spotify-car-thing-lawsuit-class-action-mazumder-may-2024.pdf
  10. ↑ https://carthing.spotify.com/
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