Spotify Inks Multiyear Direct Deal With Kobalt, Says New Licensing Model ‘Will Expand the Way Music Is Made and Shared’

Months after inking direct deals with UMPG and Warner Chappell, Spotify has unveiled a multiyear licensing agreement with Kobalt.

The streaming platform and “the world’s largest independent music publisher” formally disclosed their tie-up today. By now, most are familiar with Spotify’s bundling shenanigans, which, in a nutshell, mean that the vast majority of the DSP’s stateside subscriptions are classified as bundles.

As we’ve explored in detail, this seemingly minor reclassification is having a major impact on compositional royalties. Beyond fueling intense Phono V negotiations down the line – the NMPA and others have emphasized their dissatisfaction with the bundling craze – the situation has evidently rendered direct pacts near-term objectives for publishers.

Enter today’s Spotify-Kobalt deal, which the appropriate companies indicated will “deliver greater flexibility, efficiency, value, and protections to songwriters in the U.S.”

Unsurprisingly, the parties opted against diving into precise financial terms. But they did mention a couple interesting points – like their push to create “a licensing framework to enable new formats, innovations, and potential to connect creators and fans alike.”

Time will reveal precisely what those formats, innovations, and talent-fan connections entail. However, it’s not a secret that Spotify has been eyeing remix and mashup features, presumably poised to arrive as part of a higher-priced Super-Premium plan, for a while.

These features require distinct licenses, and against the backdrop of the bundling fiasco, the NMPA has underscored its unwillingness to rally behind the offerings without a financial incentive to do so.

“We also understand that Spotify wishes to offer a ‘remix’ feature allowing Spotify subscribers to ‘speed up, mash up, and otherwise edit’ their favorite songs to create derivative works,” the NMPA wrote back in May 2024. “Spotify is on notice that release of any such feature without the proper licenses in place from our members may constitute additional direct infringement.”

This clear-cut position could explain both Super-Premium’s delay and Spotify’s insistence that music partners must “come to the table” to bring the missing superfan tier to life. In any event, the wheels still look to be in motion; besides the Kobalt deal, DIY distributors’ terms added sweeping derivative-work permissions earlier in 2025.

Back to the Spotify-Kobalt union, the terms at hand are said to reflect “a broader shift toward licensing structures that allow songwriters to participate more directly in the value their work creates on streaming platforms.”

Like with the previously highlighted new formats, it remains to be seen what the broader shift will involve. But in a statement, Kobalt head Laurent Hubert described the partnership as “a step in the right direction.”

“As the largest independent music publisher dedicated to fighting for the rights of songwriters, this deal reaffirms our unwavering commitment to ensuring our songwriters are paid fairly for their work, and underscores the importance of progressive licensing models that reflect the real-world use of music across digital platforms,” Hubert communicated.

“This partnership is a step in the right direction, and we look forward to continuing to work with Spotify to increase the value of songwriter royalties,” the exec concluded.

On Spotify’s end, chief business officer Alex Norström specified that the licensing model in question “will expand the way music is made and shared.”

“We’ve always believed that better partnerships lead to better outcomes,” relayed Norström. “This agreement with Kobalt boosts our support of songwriters through a licensing model that unlocks new growth and will expand the way music is made and shared today.”