Spotify launch in Middle East and North Africa in November
Spotify will be taking it’s world-leading music streaming service to 2 massive new territories this November, according to new reports.
Spotify will be launching in two new big territories, the Middle East and North Africa, in a matter of months according to a leaked email. The email, sent to staff at a Dubai-based advertising agency and obtained by Gulf News, details Spotify’s plans to break into new places.
The email details Spotify’s plans to find advertisers in the regions to fund their launch there. The email reportedly contains a senior media executive searching for six brands to advertise their products for $200,000 (Dh734,500) each on Spotify’s massive streaming platform. The brands would be featured in Spotify’s free tier which allows users unlimited access to their music streaming library with adverts featured throughout to fund their listening.
The unnamed executive reportedly states in the email that “he” expects all 6 of their advertising slots to be sold within the next week. If this is true then Spotify are clearly confident of their ability to break into these new markets, even with western rivals like Apple Music already present there – not to mention local services like the popular Anghami.
It’s been slightly over a year since we reported Spotify’s plans to launch in South Africa and the Middle East. Last September Spotify posted a job advertisement for a Senior Editor/Music Programmer for South Africa, located in either London or… Dubai! The position sought to find someone in-touch with the music and culture of Soutth Africa to represent their broad musical culture on the music streaming service and stay in the loop with their community. 3 years before that we reported on Spotify’s earliest talks for entry into South Africa where they are now available. North Africa are still waiting for the streaming service.
Whilst Spotify are notable around the world and have become synonymous with music streaming in many Western countries, their reach hasn’t spread as far as you might think around the world. Spotify is available in 65 markets currently but haven’t yet launched in some of the world’s biggest territories like India and Russia. In comparison, Spotify’s biggest Western rival, Apple Music, is available in over 100 territories and only launched just over 3 years ago.