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Updated: March 03, 2022

Spotify Suspends Office In Russia Indefinitely, Removes RT, Sputnik Content

By Lawrence Agbo
March 03, 2022
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The streaming platform, Spotify has shut down its Moscow operations indefinitely in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last week.

Spotify opened a representative office in Moscow last month after a new Russian law required foreign tech companies with an audience of over 500,000 users to establish an office in the nation by 2022.

Users in Russia will still be able to access Spotify.

“We think it’s critically important to try to keep our service operational in Russia to allow for the global flow of information,” according to the statement provided to Variety by a Spotify spokesperson.

The streaming platform also said it will pull RT and Sputnik News off its platform, both Kremlin-funded news outlets with a massive global audience.

Tech giants like Apple on Tuesday said that it has stopped selling its products through the Apple store in Russia and has removed Russian state-controlled outlets RT News and Sputnik News from its App Store around the world except for Russia after it invaded Ukraine last week.