Spotify and Deezer slam French government’s plans to introduce a ‘music streaming tax’ in the market

Music streaming services have expressed concern at the French government's plan to tax music streaming services. Spotify is among the companies denouncing the new plan, warning that such a measure could lead to France losing out on future priorities.

Antoine Monin, Managing Director of Spotify France, expressed his dismay, describing the tax as "a monumental strategic error, which runs counter to the economic, cultural and technological challenges facing Europe".

In an interview with French news channel France Info, Mr Monin highlighted the potential negative impact on European streaming companies, in particular Spotify and Deezer, compared to their American counterparts such as Apple, Amazon and YouTube.

Monin argued that the tax would disproportionately affect European platforms, given their dominant position in the French streaming market and the fact that they focus primarily on music streaming, unlike the diversified portfolios of the tech giants.

"The adoption of this tax is really a blow for the music sector, for innovation and for independent European platforms such as Spotify or Deezer", according to the translated text of Mr Monin's interview on France Info.

The proposed tax on streaming services was confirmed by French President Emmanuel Macron last week (13 December). Euronews reports that the proposed tax will fund investment in the Centre National de la Musique (CNM), created in 2020 to support stakeholders across the music sector.

French senator Julien Bargeton put forward the proposal in April, calling for a 1.75% tax rate on revenues from music streaming apps such as Spotify, Deezer, Apple Music and YouTube Music.

At the time, Bargeton argued that the French streaming market was lagging behind other Western countries such as the US, the UK and Scandinavia. France is currently the world's sixth-largest recorded music market, with €920 million in revenue from recorded music in 2022, up 6.4% on the previous year, according to IFPI data.

The proposal was first approved by a Senate vote in November, ahead of the 2024 budget.

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