Spotify is finally here in India. After making us wait for months, Spotify quietly made its much-awaited Indian debut last week. I know you had been itching for this day to make the switch to the most renowned streaming platform, but you shouldn’t. Surprised? Well, let me tell you why.
All Key Spotify Features are Here
By this, I don’t mean Spotify is bad, in fact, it’s one of the best at what it does. I totally adore Spotify’s discovery and recommendation algorithms. It has introduced me to many good artists and records alike. And then, there’s a wealth of custom playlists which Spotify makes available to you, such as Discover Weekly, Release Radar, Daily Mix, Radio Stations, and a lot more. They’re customized to your music tastes, artists you follow and what you regularly listen.
This means you don’t really need to buy the Premium subscription, which starts at Rs 119 per month, until and unless you don’t want to hear disturbing ads or if you want to enjoy downloaded songs in the subway.
Music Catalog is Deficient
Yes! Shocked, are you? I was too when I learned that music from various world-popular artists like Ed Sheeran, Linkin Park, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Metallica, Twenty One Pilots, and even Coldplay to name a few, is missing from Spotify in India and that’s a major shortcoming that will make you unwilling to switch.
Spotify had been anxiously waiting for weeks to launch in India but licensing issues had held it back and now that it’s finally here, they still kind of do. If you don’t know, Spotify has made its debut in India amidst a legal battle with Warner Music Group, who has sued Spotify for using a 1957 law made for Indian broadcasters to gain a license to stream its music in India.
It’s All Up To Spotify
Well, the word on the street is that Spotify could still stream Warner’s entire music catalog in India, but it will need to keep track of songs streamed from artists signed by Warner and pay royalties accordingly in the future. However, it appears like Spotify India has decided against it and Warner’s catalog is missing at the moment – which is plain sad and disappointing for eager users like me.
