Spotify moves to ban ad block users from its platform

Music streaming service, Spotify, is ramping up its fight against ad blockers by explicitly banning them in its terms of service. 

The firm has long been anti-ad blockers. Until now, Spotify users who employed ad-circumventing software had their accounts suspended and were send a warning via email.

The suspension would be revoked if they removed their ad blocker or upgraded to a Premium account, and in some cases where the problem persisted, Spotify would terminate the account for good. 

Spotify also last year began cracking down on Android apps that let people access the service without ads.

From March 1, Spotify is going one step further by explicitly banning ad blocking software. It will terminate offending accounts immediately with no warnings, and no second chances. 

In its updated terms of service, Spotify stats that “circumventing or blocking advertisements in the Spotify Service, or creating or distributing tools designed to block advertisements in the Spotify Service” may now result in “immediate termination or suspension of your Spotify account.”

The move, while ballsy, is hardly surprising. Spotify said last year that it estimated two million people – one per cent its total users, and 2 per cent of people using the ad-supported service – were using its free service in a way that generated no revenue for the company or musicians.

Spotify’s ad-blocker-blocking plans come to light just days after Spotify acquired two podcasting companies, Gimlet and Anchor, in a bid to become a more serious player in non-music streaming. 

“These acquisitions will meaningfully accelerate our path to becoming the world’s leading audio platform, give users around the world access to the best podcast content, and improve the quality of our listening experience as well as enhance the Spotify brand,” said the company’s CEO and co-founder Daniel Ek.”

Source: The Inquirer

  Ad Blocking, Advertising, App, Digital, Marketing, Mobile, music, Spotify, Streaming