Two U.S. senators are urging the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate Spotify after allegations surfaced that the company bundled audiobooks with its music service—raising subscription prices without clearly informing users and cutting royalty payments to songwriters.
Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) sent a letter to the FTC on June 20, accusing Spotify of converting standard Premium users into higher-priced plans without proper consent. These new plans include 15 hours of audiobooks per month.
Spotify raised its Premium prices in March 2024, bumping individual plans to $12/month and family plans to $20/month. Customers are placed into the new bundled tier by default, and must manually opt out if they don’t want the audiobook content.
The senators argue that this move allows Spotify to legally lower royalty payments to music creators under current U.S. rules for bundled services. The letter states:
“Spotify’s intent seems clear — to slash the statutory royalties it pays to songwriters and music publishers. Not only has this harmed our creative community, but this action has also harmed consumers.”
In 2024, the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) sued Spotify over reduced royalty payments, but the case was dismissed in January.
Industry experts, including Danielle Aguirre of the National Music Publishers’ Association, estimate that music publishers have already lost $230 million in the first year under the new pricing model.
Spotify defended its actions, saying users were given one month’s notice of the change and that the platform offers easy cancellation and multiple subscription options.
What’s Next?
The FTC has not yet responded to the senators’ request. If an investigation moves forward, it could pressure Spotify to revise its pricing structure—or face new regulations.
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