Music streaming giant Spotify said on Thursday that its paid subscription service would no longer be available in Russia as sanctions had made payment processing in the country impossible.
“Due to new restrictions introduced by major payment providers, payment processing is currently not possible for most Premium users in Russia,” a Spotify spokesperson told AFP.
Paid premium accounts “will be canceled if a recurring payment fails and the account will be automatically transferred to our free service,” it said in a written statement.
The company said it had also “halted all advertising campaigns running in Russia”.
Spotify did not immediately confirm to AFP how many subscribers it expected to lose in Russia.
However, Spotify’s free service will remain available in Russia “to enable the global flow of information,” he said, adding that “arts and news are a powerful force for good.”
The Swedish company, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, already announced last week that it would close its offices in Russia and remove Russian state-sponsored content, such as RT and Sputnik news outlets, from its service. (AFP)