Spotify
Stream Now, Artists Get Paid Never
$67B
Value Extracted
7
Key Initiatives
The Story
Spotify disrupted the music industry by making music nearly free for consumers. We helped them realize the next step: make it nearly free for artists too, while charging labels for 'Discovery Mode' placement. The platform extracts from both sides now.
Key Achievements
Demonetized 67% of tracks by introducing minimum stream thresholds
Launched 'Discovery Mode' where artists take 30% pay cuts for visibility (legal payola)
Shrunk Release Radar from 200 tracks to 30 while adding major label spam
Let AI-generated music flood the platform to dilute royalty pools
Removed features users loved, added features nobody asked for (TikTok clone UI)
Locked down APIs, breaking third-party apps and tools
CEO invested hundreds of millions in military drone company while paying artists $0.003/stream
We disrupted music by making everyone equally unhappy—except shareholders.
D. Ek
Chief Disruption Officer
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