Spotify announced on Wednesday that it paid a record $10 billion in royalties to the music industry in 2024, marking the largest annual payout in its history. The Swedish streaming giant reported that nearly 1,500 artists earned over $1 million each in royalties last year, underscoring the platform’s significant financial contribution to the music world.
Spotify also highlighted that its annual payouts have increased substantially over the years, rising by 10 times from $1 billion in 2014. Despite this impressive growth, the company faced a legal challenge last year when it was sued in the U.S. for allegedly underpaying songwriting royalties for millions of songs. However, a federal judge in New York ruled to dismiss the lawsuit earlier this year, clearing the company of the claims.