New Study Warns Spotify’s 1,000-Stream Rule Is Silencing Southeast Europe’s Music Scene

16 December 2025 - Press release

Read the study here

 

 

A comprehensive new report entitled Impact Analysis of Spotify’s 1,000-Stream Rule, conducted by ANMIP-BG - IMPALA member and national association representing Bulgarian independent labels - in association with SoAlive Music Conference and Flat Line Collective, has uncovered a disturbing trend: artists from Southeast Europe are at risk of cultural erasure on the world’s largest music streaming platform.

The report, based on surveys of 71 independent labels and producers across the region, including catalogue holders with more than 10,000 tracks, concludes that artists from the Balkans are facing systemic erasure from Spotify.

The findings expose how Spotify’s 1,000 annual streams monetisation threshold disproportionately affects smaller markets such as Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, North Macedonia, Albania, and others in Southeast Europe. While positioned as a platform clean-up measure, the policy removes revenue from tracks that fall below the threshold: a benchmark designed for major markets like the US, UK, and Germany rather than countries with smaller populations and lower DSP adoption.

 

Key results from the study reveal:

• 65% of surveyed labels have suffered significant revenue loss

• 92% of respondents oppose the 1,000-stream policy

• Large catalog owners are hit hardest, losing monetisation across entire discographies

• Iconic artists such as Lili Ivanova and Ъпсурт (Upsurt) have multiple tracks now demonetised

• The issue is not artistic relevance; it’s structural disadvantage.

 

A companion study released earlier this year, Geographical Underrepresentation and Diversity within the EU Music Ecosystem, highlights a deeper problem: Southeast Europe is excluded from the cultural infrastructure that fuels visibility and growth. Despite 25%+ Spotify user growth in Bulgaria alone, the region remains disconnected from playlist curation and discovery pathways.

Across 1,731 showcase festival slots in Europe for 2025, artists from Southeast Europe account for just 11 performers or 0.6% of the talent pipeline.

The report outlines a closed loop:

• Artists without streaming traction struggle to access key festivals

• Artists without festival recognition fail to enter major playlists

• Spotify editorial lists favour artists already validated by EU festivals

• EU festivals favour those already visible on Spotify

• As one participant noted, “The algorithm doesn’t speak our language, so it doesn’t hear us.”

 

With over 65% of the European streaming market, Spotify’s algorithmic and editorial structures now influence what Europe consumes, and what it ignores. The absence of Balkan-based editors, metadata specialists, and culturally informed playlisting means local genres lack representation and algorithmic foothold, pushing artists toward English-language output in order to survive.

This trend contradicts the EU’s own commitments under Article 167 TFEU, which requires protection of cultural and linguistic diversity.

The report calls for urgent action from EU governing bodies, cultural institutions, and DSPs. Immediate steps proposed include:

• Reconsideration or removal of the 1,000-stream threshold

• Appointment of regional editors and metadata specialists for SEE

• Geographic diversity requirements for DSPs and festival programmes

• Designation of Spotify as a “gatekeeper” platform under DMA/DSA

• Oversight of algorithmic practices impacting cultural representation

 

These are not symbolic measures, they are essential infrastructure for fair participation in the European music economy.

The implications extend beyond the music industry. If Southeast Europe’s cultural output continues to be excluded from digital spaces, the result may deepen feelings of marginalisation and cultural disconnect within the EU.

Ruth Koleva, SoAlive Music Conference / Flat Line Collective said, “When Spotify’s algorithm doesn’t ‘see’ us, Europe doesn’t hear us. This is no longer just a music industry issue. It is a cultural equality issue.”