Spotify Closed Its Offices In Russia In Response To The Ukraine Crisis

Spotify took a drastic step in response to the Russian-Ukraine crisis. It entered the Russian market in July 2020. Recently, the company closed all offices in Russia for an indefinite amount of time. Moreover, it removed all the Russian-sponsored content from its platform.

Spotify Shuts All Its Russian Offices

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Spotify has joined several other media platforms in blocking Russian state media outlets. The Swedish music streaming service has closed its Russian office and removed content from state-backed media outlets RT and Sputnik. Since the beginning of the crisis, Spotify evaluated several contents. Moreover, it limited the discoverability of shows owned by state-owned media in Russia.

Spotify closes its office in Russia in response to attack on Ukraine https://t.co/CJNS5zeP9z pic.twitter.com/EWNDzlJkzb

— Reuters (@Reuters) March 3, 2022

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Spotify Streaming Services To Continue In Russia

Music streaming service Spotify plans to continue streaming in Russia, along with Ukraine and ten other European countries. According to a spokesperson from Spotify, it’s critical that the service continues to operate in Russia. This was done so as to allow for a global flow of information. In addition to restraining the discovery of content from other Russian government-affiliated outlets, the platform also restricts the discovery of content.

Spotify has placed the safety of its employees at the top of its priority list for the past week. Additionally, Spotify is ensuring to be an important source of news currently. At this time, having access to information is more critical than ever. Spotify’s Russian office will be closed on Thursday, according to reports. Moreover, the company will no longer be compliant with Russian laws and may face restrictions or a ban.

Corporate cancel culture will push Moscow further to the edge https://t.co/FfHaGzs4wh

— Amanya .B. Mugisha (@AmanyaMugisha) March 3, 2022

Tech Giants Took Similar Steps

YouTube, Meta (Facebook and Instagram), and Twitter have blocked RT and Sputnik accounts. Apple and Google have followed suit in their app stores. To stop the spread of misinformation, Meta has banned the Russian state media outlets Sputnik and RT across Facebook and Instagram globally.

According to legislation signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in July 2021, foreign social media businesses whose daily users exceed 500,000 must-have local offices or face severe restrictions, including outright bans. Since the Russia-Ukraine crisis, Western governments have urged companies to put up a fight.

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