Universal Music Group and Spotify have announced an expansion of their strategic relationship.
According to a statement, the partnership will “further amplify music discovery and social interaction and enhance fan experiences across the platform for UMG’s family of artists and songwriters”.
Under the agreement, Spotify will make available a series of new promotional and social features that will help artists drive interaction and create buzz around new releases. Initially, UMG artists will have the ability to share teasers of upcoming music on Spotify to increase fan engagement and pre-save activity before a new release.
Additionally, a new agreement with Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) will enable Spotify to distribute music videos in the US. It follows the beta roll-out of Spotify’s music videos.
The positivity in the language surrounding the announcement is in marked contrast to the the fall-out between UMG and TikTok. Music by the major's artists has been removed from TikTok following the licensing dispute. Universal is now seeking out new promotional opportunites for its artists, hence the new features – still to be revealed in detail – with the market-leading audio streaming platform.
Spotify has been a committed partner in creating tools that help maximise attribution and fair pay for artists and songwriters
Sir Lucian Grainge
UMG and Spotify will continue to explore additional features that allow fans to discover artists and propel virality of new releases, according to a statement. The companies said they will share more details about these new tools and how artists, songwriters and fans can leverage them in the near future.
Sir Lucian Grainge, chairman & CEO, UMG, said: “We’re excited to broaden our relationship with Spotify through the introduction of new content offerings and collaborations that will bring deeper ‘social music’ experiences to the platform. We’re always striving to expand opportunities for UMG artists and songwriters to elevate engagement with their fans, especially in the introduction of new music and artist-centric initiatives.
“Spotify has been a committed partner in creating tools that help maximise attribution and fair pay for artists and songwriters, and this demonstrates that win-win partnerships between music companies and platforms create an environment where innovation, artist compensation and next-generation fan experiences can coexist and move the industry forward.”
Daniel Ek, founder & CEO, Spotify, said: “UMG has consistently been a progressive partner on behalf of their artists and songwriters, contributing to our product development efforts of experimental tools and adopting them early to help artists stand out. The forthcoming features will put more power in the hands of artists and their teams to help them authentically express themselves, efficiently promote their work, and better monetise their art.”
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