Spotify is now explicitly banning advert blockers, as stated in an up-to-date Terms of Service policy released today. The new policy especially indicates that “circumventing or blocking advertisements within the Spotify Service, or creating or distributing tools designed to block ads within the Spotify Service can result in immediate termination or suspension of the account.
Spotify already takes extensive measures to limit ad blockers. In a DigiDay report from last year, a Spotify spokesperson revealed that the company has “a couple of detection measures in tracking consumption on the service to detect, investigate and cope with [artificial manipulation of streaming activity].”
After it was reported that 2 million users (approximately 2% of free Spotify users) had been avoiding advertisements with modified apps and accounts, Spotify began cracking down by using disabling accounts when they detected unusual activity. Users had received email warnings and given a chance to reactivate their accounts after uninstalling the ad-blocking software. In some cases where the problem persisted, Spotify might terminate the account.
The new Terms of Service, which go into effect on 1st March, will provide Spotify the authority to terminate accounts straight away, without warning.
The new guidelines will kick off an exciting milestone of growth for Spotify, as the service commits to constructing a podcast network with its recent acquisitions of podcast companies like Gimlet Media and Anchor. Spotify's last earning records confirmed that the company brought in a profit for the first time in its 13-year history.
