Spotify closes all offices in Russia, streaming giant removes all RT and Sputnik content in response to Ukraine crisis

On Wednesday, music streaming service Spotify said that it had closed its offices in Russia indefinitely and removed all state-sponsored content from the platform. The Stockholm-based company in a statement noted that the move was in response to the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

"We have closed our office in Russia until further notice," the company said. It also noted that it had examined thousands of podcast episodes since the start of the war and has limited users' ability to discover podcasts and shows owned and operated by media outlets affiliated to the Russian state.

Earlier this week, Spotify noted that it had removed all content from Russian state-sponsored news outlets RT and Sputnik within the European Union, the United States, and other markets across the world. Similar steps were also taken previously by Facebook and Twitter.

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Spotify streaming service will be available for Russian users

It will, however, continue to run its services for Russian users. "We believe that it is of utmost importance that our service is available in Russia to allow a global flow of information," the company said.

It further noted that it has assessed thousands of pieces of content and limited the discoverability of shows controlled by Russian state-owned media, since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

"Our first priority over the past week has been the safety of our employees and to ensure that Spotify continues to serve as an important source of global and regional news at a time when access to information is more important than ever," news agency Reuters quoted the company as saying.

Since July 2021, Russian legislation issued by President Vladimir Putin has required foreign social media businesses with more than 500,000 daily users to have local offices or face harsh limitations, including outright bans. Meanwhile, Western governments have been urging companies to push back since the Russia-Ukraine crisis. The music streaming service was launched in Russia and Ukraine in July 2020.