Spotify closed its office in Russia earlier this month in response to Moscow’s “unprovoked attack on Ukraine.” The new media law in Russia caused Spotify to suspend operations in the country entirely. According to the new media laws in Russia, reporting any event that could discredit the Russian military is illegal. Since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine, there have been many reports of Russian military crimes against Ukrainian civilians. Social platforms have been at the forefront of reporting the war events between Russia and Ukraine. A few weeks ago, Twitter removed a tweet from the Russian embassy in the UK that denied attacking a hospital in Ukraine. Of course, the Russian agencies didn’t stay silent and responded by blocking access to Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Moreover, a court in Russia has recently accused Meta of “extremist activity.”
Spotify won’t operate in Russia anymore
The company also clarified its decision in a statement. “Spotify has continued to believe that it’s critically important to try to keep our service operational in Russia to provide trusted, independent news and information from the region,” Spotify said in a statement. “Unfortunately, recently enacted legislation further restricting access to information, eliminating free expression, and criminalizing certain types of news puts the safety of Spotify’s employees and the possibility of even our listeners at risk.” Some sources have stated that Spotify’s activities in Russia will be officially suspended from early April. So Russian citizens may still have a few days to enjoy Spotify without restriction. However, Spotify is not the only streaming platform that is leaving the Russian market. In the early days of the invasion, Roku announced it would no longer broadcast Russian state media, including RT and Sputnik. Earlier this month, Netflix also suspended its operation in Russia, saying it won’t add Russian state media to its Russian service.
