According to NME, after France revised its tax legislation regarding streaming services, Spotify decided to withdraw from participation in two music festivals held in the country. Starting next year, the company has officially declared that it will no longer provide its support to Francofolies de La Rochelle and Printemps de Bourges. 

This decision comes in the wake of French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent announcement regarding a new tax measure for music streaming services. The tax will be based on a minimal rate of levy on the services’ turnover. The Ministry of Culture confirmed on December 13 that the tax contribution would amount to 1.2 percent of the streaming services’ turnover in France, with the exception of platforms generating less than €20 million in turnover. Spotify’s latest platform modifications have sparked controversy, particularly the introduction of a streaming threshold. This new rule dictates that songs must accumulate at least 1,000 plays before they can start generating royalties.

Spotify’s own data reveals that out of the staggering 100 million songs available on the service, only roughly 37.5 million manage to meet the criteria for revenue generation. A representative of the company shared this statement, “This is a real blow to innovation, and to the growth prospects of recorded music in France. We are evaluating the follow-up to be given to the implementation of this inequitable, unjust and disproportionate measure.” Meanwhile, a company named Tidal lays off 10 percent of staff following Spotify’s previous layoff.