The National Music Publishers’ Association has filed an FTC complaint against Spotify because it is unhappy with Spotify’s recent move to bundle music and audiobooks. The addition of audiobooks allows Spotify to reclassify its premium subscription offering as a bundle, which under US Copyright Royalty Board rules qualifies the company to pay a reduced rate to songwriters because it is licensing books and music under the same subscription price. Learn more.
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
