Spotify Launches in the Middle East & North Africa
Spotify announced it is launching its service in 13 new markets in the Middle East and North Africa on Tuesday, including United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Algeria…
Spotify announced it is launching its service in 13 new markets in the Middle East and North Africa on Tuesday (Nov. 13).
The news brings Spotify’s streaming to United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestinian Territories and Egypt. With the expansion, the streaming giant is running in 78 total global markets.
Spotify will run free and Premium services in the MENA region with a fully Arabic user experience, offering listeners local and international music with locally-curated playlists, including Today’s Top Arabic Hits, Oriental Chill Vibes and Arabic EDM.
The service will cost about half of the $9.99 subscription rate it charges in the United States: 19.99 United Arab Emirates dirhams in the UAE, SAR 19.99 Saudi riyals in Saudi Arabia, 49.99 Egyptian pounds in Egypt and $4.99 in the rest of the MENA region.
Spotify has also unveiled its Arab hub, as part of its Global Cultures initiative, where users everywhere may listen to and discover new Arabic music. It follows recent Latin and Afro hub launches.
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“I am super excited to share with you that, from today, Spotify is now available across the Middle East and North Africa,” said Cecilia Qvist, Spotify’s global head of markets, in a statement. “Spotify is launching in MENA with a full Arabic service, dozens of locally-curated playlists for every mood and moment, and access to a full catalog of millions of songs, for both our free and premium users. Music fans will also enjoy Spotify’s personalised music recommendations from day one, which will help them to enjoy, discover and share new music from both local and international artists simply and easily.”
Last month competing streaming service Deezer launched in the MENA region with plans to open a regional headquarters in Dubai in the coming months. That announcement came following news it had entered into an exclusive long-term partnership with Arabic music powerhouse Rotana to distribute the Saudi Arabia-based company’s audio and visual content.