Spotify’s new audiobook bundle may reduce music royalties and shortchange authors | Millicent Weber for the Conversation

Music artists say the bundle is ‘cheating’ the royalties system while authors have concerns about how streaming will affect how they’re paid and rights over their work

Audio streaming giant Spotify, one of the world’s largest audio platforms, entered the audiobook market last October, offering its premium subscribers 15 hours per month of free audiobook listening. But audiobook bundling has led to reduced royalties for songwriters.

Last month, the National Music Publishers’ Association, which represents music publishers and songwriters, filed a complaint with the US Federal Trade Commission, calling the bundle “a scheme to increase profits by deceiving consumers and cheating the music royalty system”.

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