Daniel Ek Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Spotify over comments made on his podcast.Neil Young was the first to pull his music due to Rogan spreading “misinformation” about COVID-19, with Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash following in solidarity.Spotify CEO Daniel Ek responded to the row in an official statement, saying that Spotify would be adding COVID-19 content advisories to all relevant podcast episodes and Rogan himself has publicly addressed the backlash in a post discussing “some of the controversy that’s been going on over the past few days”.Now, Stewart has waded into the row on his own podcast The Problem With Jon Stewart saying artists’ actions towards Rogan were “a mistake”.“There’s no question that there is egregious misinformation that’s purposeful and hateful, and that being moderated is a credit to the platforms that run them,” Stewart said. “But this overreaction to Rogan, I think, is a mistake.”He pointed to an episode of the Joe Rogan Experience in which Rogan argued with Australian media personality Josh Szeps about whether COVID-19 itself or its vaccine was more likely to make patients vulnerable to myocarditis.When the two disagreed, Rogan offered to look it up, and when he was proven wrong he accepted it.As a result, Stewart believed that Rogan was open to other opinions and urged artists not to not “leave, abandon or censor” but instead “engage”.Meanwhile, India.Arie has become one of the latest artists to leave Spotify over Rogan’s “language around race”.

India.Arie has shared clips of Joe Rogan referring to Black neighbourhoods as “Planet of the Apes” and using the N-word in several episodes.This follows the singer’s recent announcement about leaving Spotify, citing their hosting of Rogan’s podcast and his “language around race” as the reasons why she pulled her music from the platform.Arie has now shared more about her decision, referring to specific episodes in the below video.“He shouldn’t even be uttering the word. Don’t even say it, under any context.

Daniel Ek said exclusive deals like one with Joe Rogan are critical to the company’s business, that he sometimes finds the podcast offensive, but that he doesn’t consider Spotify a “publisher” in terms of bearing responsibility for content it carries.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSpotify’s staff was up in arms about the company and co-founder/CEO Daniel Ek’s defense of Joe Rogan in a town hall meeting Wednesday that followed its middling quarterly report and subsequent stock drop, according to a report in the Verge that cites a leaked audio recording of the meeting.In Ek’s 15-minute speech, he positioned the company as both a platform and publisher, saying that “There are many things that Joe Rogan says that I strongly disagree with and find very offensive,” he said, but defended the company’s relationship with the controversial podcaster by stating, “If we want even a shot at achieving our bold ambitions, it will mean having content on Spotify that many of us may not be proud to be associated with. Not anything goes, but there will be opinions, ideas, and beliefs that we disagree with strongly and even makes us angry or sad.” Reps for Spotify did not immediately respond to Variety‘s requests for comment.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has defended the streaming platform, saying “it’s too early to know” the impact of the recent Joe Rogan row on the company’s future.Earlier this month, hundreds of scientists and medical professionals asked Spotify to address COVID misinformation on its platform, sparked by comments made on The Joe Rogan Experience.More than 270 members of the science and medical community signed the open letter, which called Rogan’s actions “not only objectionable and offensive but also medically and culturally dangerous”.The situation then made headline news, with Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Crazy Horse member Nils Lofgren and more pulling their music from the service after Young sparked a protest against the misinformation being spread about the virus on Rogan’s Spotify original podcast.Other public figures also weighed in on the debate, with Catherine Mayer – the widow of Gang Of Four‘s Andy Gill – criticising Spotify for platforming anti-vax sentiments. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, meanwhile, said in a statement that they had expressed concerns about misinformation to Spotify last year.

A steady stream of artists and other creators continue to join the Spotify boycott over the Joe Rogan podcast, although the streaming service’s boss Daniel Ek has told investors that it’s too soon to say to what extent that boycott is having a negative impact on subscriber numbers.The boycott was instigated by Neil Young, of course, who in turn was responding to a letter signed by 250+ scientists and medics which accused the Spotify exclusive podcast the Joe Rogan Experience of “a concerning history of broadcasting misinformation, particularly regarding the COVID-19 pandemic”.After Young’s label confirmed it was removing the musician’s music from Spotify – and other artists piled onto social media pledging support and, in some cases, announcing that they were joining the boycott – both Ek and Rogan issued statements on Sunday evening, hoping to quell the rebellion.Ek said that Spotify actually had solid policies for dealing with any misinformation that appears in podcasts uploaded to the platform, but that it needed to be more transparent about those policies.He also committed to signpost COVID information approved by the scientific consensus alongside any podcast which, although adhering to Spotify’s misinformation policies, nevertheless contain controversial opinions about the pandemic.

Daniel Ek is opening up about the controversy surrounding Spotify in a conference call which announced new quarterly numbers.

Spotify’s Daniel Ek addressed questions from investors and reporters in a Q&A session following the release of the company’s fourth-quarter earnings, which showed an increase of 8 million paying subscribers but middling financial results — but reflected a period before the firestorm of controversy around Neil Young and other musicians’ requests to remove their music from the service in response to anti-vaccine comments made on Joe Rogan’s Spotify-hosted podcast.The earnings report contributed to a significant immediate drop in the company’s stock price in after-hours trading, even as Ek spoke to investors on a livestreamed Q&A. In after-hours trading after reporting Q4 results, Spotify’s stock — which historically has been highly volatile — fell as much as 22%.

Spotify said monthly active users rose 18% to 404 million for the fourth quarter of 2021 as premium subscribers hit 183 million and revenue grew 24%. It reported numbers as controversy swirls around Joe Rogan.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSpotify posted middling results for the fourth quarter of 2021 — a period that does not include the recent controversy over Neil Young and other musicians removing their music from the streaming giant, which is the world’s largest paid music-subscription service.Premium subscribers grew to 180 million — up 8 million from the 172 million reported last year — and monthly average users grew 18% to 406 million, from 381 million.However, ARPU (average revenue per user) grew just 3% year over year in the quarter, and just 1% on a constant currency basis. Ad-Supported revenue reached a record 15% of total revenue, according to the announcement, with gross margin at 26.5%.Spotify’s market capitalization fell about $2.1 billion over a three-day span last week after Young pulled his songs from the audio-streaming giant.

Claudia Eller Co-Editor-in-ChiefWhen Neil Young pulled his music from Spotify over the audio streamer’s continued support of Joe Rogan, whom he accused of spreading “misinformation and lies” about COVID via his podcast interviews, there were some nasty “who cares?” tweets directed at the folk-rock icon. But the haters should care that this deadly pandemic has been raging for nearly two years and it ain’t over yet.Young has been adamant for some time that artists shouldn’t be touring because of COVID; he even pulled out of a Farm Aid benefit, a charity he co-founded.

Zack Sharf Dwayne Johnson commended Joe Rogan on Instagram (via Newsweek) after the controversial podcast host issued a statement on his spread of COVID misinformation. Johnson even told Rogan that he “looks forward” to coming on the podcast one day and “breaking out the tequila with you.” The controversy over Rogan’s podcast resulted in artists such as Neil Young and Joni Mitchell removing their music from Spotify, citing Rogan’s damaging spread of COVID misinformation.

Endeavor Content-backed Scandinavian indie Nordic Drama Queens has hired the producer behind Netflix’s upcoming The Playlist (Spotify Untold).

Tech stocks and the beleaguered Nasdaq jumped today in a rally led by streamers Spotify, Netflix and Roku. All have seen their shares pummeled, with Netflix in particular being hit by disappointing subscriber numbers last quarter and Spotify embroiled in a Joe Rogan controversy.

Spotify will direct listeners to correct Covid-19 information on any and all podcasts discussing the pandemic, CEO Daniel Ek has announced. The news comes in the wake of the company losing billions in market value and musicians including Neil Young removing their music from the platform in protest at podcasters such as Joe Rogan sharing misinformation to millions of listeners.

Both Joe Rogan and Spotify boss Daniel Ek have now formally responded to the headline-grabbing criticism that has been made about COVID misinformation in the former’s podcast and on the latter’s platform. Ek has pledged more transparency about his company’s policies for dealing with harmful content, while Rogan says he will look into ways to ensure his programme is more balanced in the future, in particular by having “more experts with differing opinions, right after the controversial ones”.The official statements from Rogan and Ek were in response to a rapidly building backlash against Spotify that was kickstarted by an open letter from Neil Young just one week ago.

Joe Rogan admitted today that he doesn’t “always get it right” on his podcast and promised to “do better” going forward as Spotify scrambled this weekend to contain the growing backlash to the ex-Fear Factor host’s take on Covid-19 vaccines.

Spotify is adding COVID-19 content advisories to all relevant podcast episodes, the streaming company has announced in a new statement.Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and Crazy Horse member Nils Lofgren have pulled their music from the platform after Young sparked a protest against the misinformation being spread about the virus on Joe Rogan’s Spotify podcast.Now, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has responded in an official statement that sets out the company’s plan to tackle the spread of misinformation on its site. The main proponent of that plan involves adding content advisories to every podcast episode that discusses coronavirus.“This advisory will direct listeners to our dedicated COVID-19 Hub, a resource that provides easy access to data-driven facts, up-to-date information as shared by scientists, physicians, academics and public health authorities around the world, as well as links to trusted sources,” the statement said.“This new effort to combat misinformation will roll out to countries around the world in the coming days.

Spotify is updating its protocols.

J. Kim Murphy Spotify has bowed in the face of pressure from critics about supporting the spread of COVID and vaccine misinformation with a plan to add warning labels on its global platform to content that skirts the line between “what is acceptable and what is not,” as CEO Daniel Ek stated Sunday.Ek’s lengthy statement outlining Spotify’s official content policies comes in response to a gathering storm of criticism and calls for boycotts of the streaming service that has seen artists like Neil Young and Joni Mitchell demand their music be removed from the platform, accusing the company of assisting in spreading misinformation about COVID-19 and vaccinations.In his statement, Ek vowed that Spotify would affix warnings on podcast episodes that include conversations about COVID-19.

Spotify‘s CEO Daniel Ek’s investment in artificial intelligence defence technology has been met with backlash by artists and users on the streaming platform.Ek announced earlier this month, that he was investing 100million euros (£85.2 million) into defence company Helsing and he was joining the board.The company plans to use artificial intelligence to support militaries in battlefield assessment operations, reports Mixmag.The AI software can apparently recognise patterns from camera, thermal

Naman Ramachandran Production has commenced on Netflix’s untitled scripted series about Spotify, the Swedish start-up that revolutionized the music industry and evolved into one of the world’s leading music services.The six-part limited series revolves around the young Swedish tech entrepreneur Daniel Ek and his key partners who shook up the music industry by offering free and legal streamed music around the world.Starring in the series are Edvin Endre (“Vikings”) as Daniel Ek; Ulf Stenberg

Spotify co-founder Daniel Ek is reportedly readying a fresh takeover bid of Arsenal, with the new offer thought to be worth £2bn.Ek’s first attempt at buying the Premier League club was knocked back last month by Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, who represent the club’s owners Stan and Josh Kroenke.While his initial £1.8bn takeover bid – which received the backing of former Arsenal stars Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp – failed, Ek has retained a keen interest in buying the club he has

Spotify co-founder Daniel Ek’s proposed takeover bid was rejected last week.Ek, who is a lifelong Arsenal fan, confirmed on Saturday (May 15) that his reported £1.8bn offer to buy the Premier League club had been rejected by Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, who represent the club’s owners Stan and Josh Kroenke.Ek said in a tweet that his bid included “fan ownership, representation at the board and a golden share for the supporters”, but that it was knocked back by the Kroenkes as, Ek claims,

Spotify co-founder Daniel Ek is reportedly still interested in buying Arsenal after his reported £1.8bn takeover bid was rejected last week.Ek, who is a lifelong Arsenal fan, confirmed on Saturday (May 15) that his offer to buy the Premier League club had been rejected by Arsenal’s current owners Kroenke Sports & Entertainment.“This week, an offer was made to both [Arsenal director] Josh Kroenke and their bankers that included fan ownership, representation at the board and a golden share for the

Spotify founder Daniel Ek has revealed that Arsenal FC has rejected his bid to buy the club.Last month, after thousands of angry fans amassed outside the club’s Emirates Stadium amid the fallout from the proposed European Super League, Ek said he would be interested in buying Arsenal if it ever went up for sale.“As a kid growing up, I’ve cheered for @Arsenal as long as I can remember,” he wrote on Twitter at the time.

Spotify founder Daniel Ek has insisted that he’s serious about his bid to buy Arsenal and has the necessary funding for the move.It comes after Ek, who founded the streaming service in 2006 is estimated to be worth £3.4billion, reportedly recruited Arsenal legends Thierry Henry, Patrick Viera and Dennis Bergkamp in a bid to buy the club from beleaguered owner Stan Kroenke.Arsenal and Kroenke were condemned last week for their role in plans to join a newly constructed European Super League, a

Spotify founder Daniel Ek has reportedly recruited three of Arsenal’s legendary Invincibles team as he prepares to buy the club from beleaguered owner Stan Kroenke.The new report in The Telegraph comes after Ek, who is estimated to be worth £3.4billion, said on Twitter that he was interested in taking over the north London side.“As a kid growing up, I’ve cheered for Arsenal as long as I can remember,” Ek wrote last week.“If KSE would like to sell Arsenal I’d be happy to throw my hat in the

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has expressed an interest in buying Arsenal FC if it was ever to go up for sale.It comes after thousands of angry fans amassed outside the club’s Emirates Stadium prior to its game against Everton on Friday (April 23) to protest its current owner, American billionaire Stan Kroenke.Arsenal were one of six Premier League clubs that initially agreed to join a newly constructed European Super League, a breakaway competition designed at rivalling the Champions League.

Spotify co-founder and CEO Daniel Ek says that he is interested in buying English Premier League club Arsenal if its current owners, Kroenke Sports Enterprises, are willing to sell. Ek tweeted out his intention to "throw my hat into the ring" in a tweet on Friday afternoon, as thousands of Arsenal fans protested against KSE outside the Emirates Stadium before a league game with Everton.

Spotify, the brainchild of Swedish entrepreneurs Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon, changed all that. Founded in Stockholm on April 23, 2006, and seeking a solution to the industry’s piracy problem, the on-demand audio-streaming service was built on the understanding that consumers who aren’t inclined to buy a specific album or song might be willing to pay for ease of access to a large library of music.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAs part of a long presentation called “Stream On,” Spotify announced that it will be introducing a hi-fi option later this year, among other benefits for fans and creators.

Spotify’s successful earnings report on Wednesday morning, cofounder and CEO Daniel Ek and CFO Paul Vogel did a round of brief phone interviews.

Streaming audio giant Spotify said fourth quarter podcast consumption nearly doubled, premium subscribers hit 155 million and monthly active users jumped 27% to 345 million in the fourth quarter of 2020 — helping drive a 17% increase in revenue.

Rick Astley was some kind of omnipotent superbeing.

Ek said it “wasn’t enough” for artists to “record music once every three to four years”.Since his comments were published, a number of musicians have criticised him for not understanding or overlooking the work that goes into making music and how that can’t be forced.“‘Music = product and must be churned out regularly,’ says billionaire Daniel Ek,” commented R.E.M.’s Mike Mills. “Go fuck yourself.” However, the musician said a boycott of the platform would only hurt artists more.