Universal Music Group Bosses Finally Push Back on Spotify’s Bundling Shenanigans
Universal Music Group Bosses Finally Push Back on Spotify’s Bundling Shenanigans — Now There’s a Direct Deal with UMPG Dealing With the Royalty Loophole
Since early 2024, Spotify has been ramming nearly every subscriber into a cut-rate ‘bundled’ package involving music and audiobooks — and boasting about the huge royalty savings while fighting publishers tooth-and-nail. Now, there’s serious pushback coming from Universal Music Group itself — and a brand-new, direct licensing deal with Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) to deal with the bundling funny business.