Spotify to cut 1,500 jobs as it looks to grow faster

‘To be blunt, many smart, talented and hard-working people will be departing us,’ CEO says

Spotify is to cut around 1,600 jobs (Andrew Matthews/PA) (PA Archive)

Spotify will cut nearly a fifth of jobs at the company in an attempt to grow faster.

It is the latest round of cuts at the streaming service, which axed around 600 jobs at the beginning of the year.

Its chief executive said it had made the decision to allow it to grow faster, and acknowledged that it would be losing good employees.

Bosses at the technology firm said in a note to staff that it will axe 17 per cent of the workforce in a bid to be more efficient in the face of a growth slowdown.

The company employs around 9,300 people globally.

It did not disclose how many roles would be affected in the UK but employs 881 people in the country, according to its latest annual report.

This would suggest around 150 jobs in the UK may be at risk.

Daniel Ek, chief executive of Spotify, said: “Considering the gap between our financial goal state and our current operational costs, I decided that a substantial action to right-size our costs was the best option to accomplish our objectives.

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

“To be blunt, many smart, talented and hard-working people will be departing us.”

He said the business will “build an even stronger Spotify” in 2024 as a result of the cuts.

It is the latest set of job losses at Spotify this year, with the company first announcing it would cut around 600 roles in January.

In the summer, the Sweden-based business said it would cut around 200 jobs in its podcasting unit as it continued to reduce costs.

The company also increased its subscription fees in the UK, US and Australia in July, as it said it would pass cost increases on to customers.

Additional reporting by agencies