Spotify has announced its withdrawal from Russia, citing a new rule that threatens jail time for spreading "false news" against the country's armed forces.
The music streaming service said it had suspended its free service due to safety concerns for its employees and "perhaps even our listeners."
Spotify closed its Russian headquarters earlier this month.
However, it stated that it wished to keep its service running in order to deliver "independent news" to the country.
"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."
New restrictions on what media businesses can broadcast or post online mean that spreading "false news" about Russia's invasion of Ukraine can result in severe prison sentences.
Following the legislation's passage, Bloomberg, the New York Times, and CNN were among the media outlets that announced plans to halt reporting from the country earlier this month.
TikTok likewise halted live broadcasting and fresh material on its platform following its launch.
Spotify is primarily known as a music streaming network, and it will arrive in Russia in 2020. However, as part of its business strategy, it has actively gone into podcasting, with a collection that includes many news and current affairs programmes.
It has been unable to sell its premium memberships in Ukraine since the conflict began due to restrictions imposed by payment providers in response to international sanctions.
This latest move adds to the list of hundreds of major companies that have abandoned or reduced their operations in the country, including BP, McDonald's, and Netflix.
(Source:www.bbc.com)
The music streaming service said it had suspended its free service due to safety concerns for its employees and "perhaps even our listeners."
Spotify closed its Russian headquarters earlier this month.
However, it stated that it wished to keep its service running in order to deliver "independent news" to the country.
"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."
New restrictions on what media businesses can broadcast or post online mean that spreading "false news" about Russia's invasion of Ukraine can result in severe prison sentences.
Following the legislation's passage, Bloomberg, the New York Times, and CNN were among the media outlets that announced plans to halt reporting from the country earlier this month.
TikTok likewise halted live broadcasting and fresh material on its platform following its launch.
Spotify is primarily known as a music streaming network, and it will arrive in Russia in 2020. However, as part of its business strategy, it has actively gone into podcasting, with a collection that includes many news and current affairs programmes.
It has been unable to sell its premium memberships in Ukraine since the conflict began due to restrictions imposed by payment providers in response to international sanctions.
This latest move adds to the list of hundreds of major companies that have abandoned or reduced their operations in the country, including BP, McDonald's, and Netflix.
(Source:www.bbc.com)
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