{"id":190866,"date":"2025-09-30T09:14:08","date_gmt":"2025-09-30T13:14:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/2025\/09\/30\/merlin-renews-spotify-licensing-deal-bolstering-indie-musics-role-in-streaming-growth-2\/"},"modified":"2025-09-30T09:14:08","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T13:14:08","slug":"merlin-renews-spotify-licensing-deal-bolstering-indie-musics-role-in-streaming-growth-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/2025\/09\/30\/merlin-renews-spotify-licensing-deal-bolstering-indie-musics-role-in-streaming-growth-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Merlin Renews Spotify Licensing Deal, Bolstering Indie Music\u2019s Role in Streaming\u00a0Growth"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!-- no image --><\/p>\n<div><!-- do not apply CSS styles to this element! --><\/p>\n<div class=\"pmc-paywall\">\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tMerlin, the digital licensing partner representing the independent music sector, announced that it has renewed its licensing agreement with Spotify, ensuring that music from its member labels \u2014 including Domino, Ninja Tune, Secretly Group, Merge, Warp, Epitaph, !K7, Hopeless Records and others \u2014 remains available to Spotify\u2019s nearly 700 million global users.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tSince Spotify\u2019s launch in 2008, Merlin has been a key partner, providing a single global license that gives the streaming platform access to a vast catalog of independent music. Their collaboration has spanned 17 years, with a previous multi-year agreement <a href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/spotify-merlin-licensing-agreement-indies\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/spotify-merlin-licensing-agreement-indies\/\">signed<\/a> in 2017.<\/p>\n<div class=\"injected-related-story \/\/ lrv-u-display-inline-block lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-margin-t-2 u-margin-t-26@mobile-max u-margin-b-0.875@mobile-max u-margin-b-150@tablet u-border-t-12 lrv-u-padding-t-025 u-padding-b-1.313 lrv-u-padding-b-125@mobile-max lrv-u-border-color-black\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<h3 id=\"title-of-a-story\" class=\"c-title  lrv-a-unstyle-link lrv-u-whitespace-nowrap u-font-weight-700 lrv-u-display-inline-block u-line-height-18px a-font-accent u-letter-spacing-0225 u-font-size-16 lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-article-badge-underline a-article-esp u-display-inline-flex lrv-u-margin-b-1@mobile-max u-margin-b-9@tablet\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tRelated\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<div class=\"injected-related-story-wrapper lrv-u-flex lrv-u-justify-content-space-between lrv-u-padding-tb-050@desktop a-children-border-vertical a-children-border--grey a-children-border-width-050\">\n<div class=\"o-card \">\n<p>\t\t\t<a tabindex=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/a2im-ian-harrison-new-ceo-richard-james-burgess-steps-down\/\" class=\"lrv-u-color-black:hover lrv-u-flex u-flex-direction-column@desktop\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  lrv-u-margin-b-075 lrv-u-margin-b-00@mobile-max u-width-130px@mobile-max\">\n<div class=\"a-crop-6x4 a-crop-3x2@mobile-max\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/merlin-spotify-renew-global-licensing-deal\/\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Ian-Harrison_2025-cr_Jordan-Kelsey-Knight-billboard-1800.jpg?w=237&amp;h=147&amp;crop=1\" alt=\"Ian Harrison\" data-lazy-srcset=\"\" data-lazy-sizes=\"auto\" height=\"\" width=\"\"><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"o-card__content \">\n<p><span class=\"c-span  lrv-u-whitespace-nowrap\"><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"o_category \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"c_title \">\n<h3 id=\"title-of-a-story\" class=\"c-title  a-font-basic-fancy u-font-size-15 u-font-size-15.5@mobile-max u-line-height-22px u-padding-r-0.188@desktop u-word-spacing-0013 u-line-height-22.5px@mobile-max a-truncate-ellipsis-4line@mobile-max a-truncate-ellipsis-3line\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tA2IM Selects New CEO as Richard James Burgess Steps Down After a\u00a0Decade\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<p><time class=\"c-timestamp  \" datetime=\"00:00-YY-DD-MM\"><\/p>\n<p><\/time><\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"o-card \">\n<p>\t\t\t<a tabindex=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/business\/business-news\/blondish-rid-new-york-nightlife-single-use-plastic-1236072914\/\" class=\"lrv-u-color-black:hover lrv-u-flex u-flex-direction-column@desktop\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  lrv-u-margin-b-075 lrv-u-margin-b-00@mobile-max u-width-130px@mobile-max\">\n<div class=\"a-crop-6x4 a-crop-3x2@mobile-max\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/merlin-spotify-renew-global-licensing-deal\/\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/BLOND-ISH-Credit-Bye-Bye-Plastic-2025-billboard-1800.jpg?w=237&amp;h=147&amp;crop=1\" alt=\"BLOND:ISH\" data-lazy-srcset=\"\" data-lazy-sizes=\"auto\" height=\"\" width=\"\"><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"o-card__content \">\n<p><span class=\"c-span  lrv-u-whitespace-nowrap\"><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"o_category \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"c_title \">\n<h3 id=\"title-of-a-story\" class=\"c-title  a-font-basic-fancy u-font-size-15 u-font-size-15.5@mobile-max u-line-height-22px u-padding-r-0.188@desktop u-word-spacing-0013 u-line-height-22.5px@mobile-max a-truncate-ellipsis-4line@mobile-max a-truncate-ellipsis-3line\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tHow Blond:ish Plans to Eliminate 42 Tons of Waste From NYC Nightlife Every Year: &lsquo;This Is My Passion&rsquo;\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<p><time class=\"c-timestamp  \" datetime=\"00:00-YY-DD-MM\"><\/p>\n<p><\/time><\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"o-card \">\n<p>\t\t\t<a tabindex=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/business\/legal\/beyonce-unreleased-music-suspect-arrested-1236068033\/\" class=\"lrv-u-color-black:hover lrv-u-flex u-flex-direction-column@desktop\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  lrv-u-margin-b-075 lrv-u-margin-b-00@mobile-max u-width-130px@mobile-max\">\n<div class=\"a-crop-6x4 a-crop-3x2@mobile-max\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/merlin-spotify-renew-global-licensing-deal\/\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/03-beyonce-cowboy-carter-tour-opener-2025-billboard-1548.jpg?w=237&amp;h=147&amp;crop=1\" alt=\"Beyonc\u00e9\" data-lazy-srcset=\"\" data-lazy-sizes=\"auto\" height=\"\" width=\"\"><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"o-card__content \">\n<p><span class=\"c-span  lrv-u-whitespace-nowrap\"><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"o_category \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"c_title \">\n<h3 id=\"title-of-a-story\" class=\"c-title  a-font-basic-fancy u-font-size-15 u-font-size-15.5@mobile-max u-line-height-22px u-padding-r-0.188@desktop u-word-spacing-0013 u-line-height-22.5px@mobile-max a-truncate-ellipsis-4line@mobile-max a-truncate-ellipsis-3line\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tSuspect Arrested in Theft of Beyonc\u00e9&rsquo;s Unreleased Music\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<p><time class=\"c-timestamp  \" datetime=\"00:00-YY-DD-MM\"><\/p>\n<p><\/time><\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tMerlin and Spotify have worked together to help independent artists and labels flourish across both emerging and established markets. The renewed deal highlights their shared role in fueling the global rise of genres like Afrobeats and Amapiano, driving a rock revival and supporting the ongoing growth of alternative, electronic, Latin, rap and other genres nurtured by indie labels.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThe renewal comes at a time when streaming dominates the music industry. According to the Recording Industry Association of America, streaming now accounts for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/riaa-2025-mid-year-report-recorded-music-revenues-streaming\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/riaa-2025-mid-year-report-recorded-music-revenues-streaming\/\">84%<\/a> of total U.S. recorded music revenue, a significant jump from 51% in 2017. Paid subscriptions continue to lead, with 105 million accounts contributing $3.2 billion in revenue.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tAs Spotify evolves, the agreement ensures that Merlin\u2019s members \u2014 who represent 15% of the global market \u2014 remain central to shaping the future of streaming. The deal aims to foster a sustainable, artist-first ecosystem that supports the next generation of independent creators, labels, and distributors.<\/p>\n<div class=\"injected-related-story \/\/ lrv-u-display-inline-block lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-margin-t-2 u-margin-t-26@mobile-max u-margin-b-0.875@mobile-max u-margin-b-150@tablet u-border-t-12 lrv-u-padding-t-025 u-padding-b-1.313 lrv-u-padding-b-125@mobile-max lrv-u-border-color-black injected-single-story lrv-u-border-b-1\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<h3 id=\"title-of-a-story\" class=\"c-title  lrv-a-unstyle-link lrv-u-whitespace-nowrap u-font-weight-700 lrv-u-display-inline-block u-line-height-18px a-font-accent u-letter-spacing-0225 u-font-size-16 lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-article-badge-underline a-article-esp u-display-inline-flex lrv-u-margin-b-1@mobile-max u-margin-b-075\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tRelated\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<div class=\"injected-related-story-wrapper lrv-u-flex lrv-u-justify-content-space-between lrv-u-padding-tb-050@desktop a-children-border-vertical a-children-border--grey a-children-border-width-050\">\n<div class=\"o-card \">\n<p>\t\t\t<a tabindex=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/p\/indie-power-players-2025\/\" class=\"lrv-u-color-black:hover lrv-u-flex u-flex-direction-column@desktop\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  lrv-u-margin-b-075 lrv-u-margin-b-00@mobile-max u-width-130px@mobile-max\">\n<div class=\"a-crop-6x4 a-crop-3x2@mobile-max\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/merlin-spotify-renew-global-licensing-deal\/\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Billboard-Indie-Power-Players-2025-featured.jpg?w=237&amp;h=147&amp;crop=1\" alt=\"2025 Indie Power Players\" data-lazy-srcset=\"\" data-lazy-sizes=\"auto\" height=\"\" width=\"\"><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"o-card__content \">\n<p><span class=\"c-span  lrv-u-whitespace-nowrap\"><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"o_category \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"c_title \">\n<h3 id=\"title-of-a-story\" class=\"c-title  a-font-basic-fancy u-font-size-15 u-font-size-15.5@mobile-max u-line-height-22px u-padding-r-0.188@desktop u-word-spacing-0013 u-line-height-22.5px@mobile-max a-truncate-ellipsis-4line@mobile-max a-truncate-ellipsis-3line\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tIndie Power Players 2025 List\u00a0Revealed\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<p><time class=\"c-timestamp  \" datetime=\"00:00-YY-DD-MM\"><\/p>\n<p><\/time><\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThe announcement also marks a milestone for Merlin CEO <strong>Jeremy Sirota<\/strong>, who will <a data-id=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/jeremy-sirota-leaving-merlin\/\" data-type=\"link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/jeremy-sirota-leaving-merlin\/\">step down<\/a> at the end of the year. Under his leadership, Merlin expanded its reach by securing deals with platforms like Apple, Audiomack, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/merlin-renews-licensing-agreement-meta\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/merlin-renews-licensing-agreement-meta\/\">Meta<\/a>, Canva, Peloton, <a data-id=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/soundcloud-merlin-fan-powered-streaming-royalties-deal\/\" data-type=\"link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/soundcloud-merlin-fan-powered-streaming-royalties-deal\/\">Soundcloud<\/a>, Snap and Twitch, among others. The organization added over 100 new members during his tenure and launched initiatives like Merlin Engage, a mentorship program for aspiring women executives, and Merlin Insights, a data analytics tool for members navigating the streaming landscape.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cMerlin\u2019s mission is to empower our members to own their future,\u201d said Sirota. \u201cSpotify remains a key and forward-looking partner in advancing that mission. This isn\u2019t just about securing fair terms \u2014 it\u2019s about building frameworks that unleash creativity and ensure our global membership can thrive and lead.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tSpotify\u2019s co-president and chief business officer, <strong>Alex Norstr\u00f6m<\/strong>, echoed the sentiment: \u201cIndependent music has always been at the heart of discovery on Spotify. Our partnership with Merlin enables that at a global scale. This renewal reflects our commitment to helping independent labels and artists flourish while growing the value of music for creators everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ubpass.co\/billboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\"><br \/>\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/2HpFicp.png\" alt=\"Billboard VIP Pass\" style=\"max-width: 100%;height: auto\"><br \/>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/merlin-spotify-renew-global-licensing-deal\/\">Aller \u00e0 la source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Merlin, the digital licensing partner representing the independent music sector, announced that it has renewed its licensing agreement with Spotify, ensuring that music from its member labels \u2014 including Domino, Ninja Tune, Secretly Group, Merge, Warp, Epitaph, !K7, Hopeless Records and others \u2014 remains available to Spotify\u2019s nearly 700 million global users. Since Spotify\u2019s launch [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-190866","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-musique","et-doesnt-have-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190866","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=190866"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190866\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=190866"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=190866"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=190866"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}