Spotify to cut 1,500 jobs to reduce costs

A company that helped Taylor Swift earn more than $100 million has announced it is cutting 17% of its staff to cut costs.

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Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said in a memo to employees that the company has to “rightsize” after hiring too many people in 2020 and 2021, NPR reported.

Ek said in the memo, “While I am convinced this is the right action for our company, I also understand it will be incredibly painful for our team.”

He also said that the company was “more productive but less efficient” adding, “We need to be both.”

Affected employees should all have one-on-one meetings with HR by close of business on Tuesday and will receive severance pay, paid-out PTO, healthcare during the severance period, career support and immigration support for those whose immigration status is connected with their employment.

Severance will last about five months on average, CNN reported.

This is the third round of layoffs to hit Spotify and accounts for about 1,500 jobs, CNBC reported. The memo did not specify where the cuts would occur.

Spotify said it had a $70.7 million profit in the third quarter, attributing the amount to lower spending on marketing and lowered personnel costs. The company also raised the cost of subscription plans this year, CNBC reported.

As for Swift, she was named the streaming platform’s top-streamed artist for 2023, Billboard reported. From Jan. 1 to last week, the “Cardigan” singer had 26.1 billion streams, making her the highest earner in Spotify’s history with more than an estimated $100 million in royalties, according to Billboard. The publication said that royalties could be as high as $131 million if you add in Swift’s publishing revenue.