‘Insidiously provocative, morally unacceptable’: Turkey warns legal action against Spotify over offensive content

Turkey’s Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism on Friday (Jul 4) called for legal action against popular music streaming app Spotify, accusing the Swedish platform of hosting content that violates the country’s cultural and religious values. In a statement, Batuhan Mumcu alleged that Spotify failed to remove content that targets religious figures and government officials despite repeated warnings from Turkish authorities.

“Content that targets our religious and national values and insults the beliefs of our society has not been corrected in any way; discrimination and rights violations against our artists have been ignored,” Mumcu said in a post on X.

He further said that “under the guise of ‘playlists’ on the platform, the content on Spotify “disregards our religious sensitivities toward our Prophet Hz. Muhammad (s.a.v.), deliberately and absolutely unacceptably targeting the beliefs, sacred values, and spiritual world of our people.”

“Content that targets the esteemed wife of our President, Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Mrs. Emine Erdoğan, incompatible with the cultural and moral values of our nation, insidiously provocative, and morally unacceptable, undermining the unity and solidarity of our society, has been identified,” he added.

Mumcu further said that the “irresponsibility and lack of oversight, which disregards the sensitivities of our society, has now become a legal matter.” He said, “I would like to emphasize that I will personally follow this process and ensure that every step is taken to ensure no violation goes unpunished.”

The minister noted that they have been closely monitoring the content published on Spotify for a long time and have conveyed “necessary warnings to the relevant parties through our institutions. However, we observe that Spotify persistently refuses to take the necessary steps despite all our previous warnings.”

On Friday, Turkey’s antitrust board opened an investigation to determine whether the Stockholm-based company violates competition in the music industry through its strategies and policies in Turkey, according to a statement on the Competition Board’s website.

In a statement, Spotify said that it has a clear commitment to Turkey and its laws. “We are cooperating with the investigation, are actively seeking to understand it, and will work toward a swift, constructive resolution,” a company spokesperson said.

Earlier this week, four employees of satirical magazine LeMan were arrested for allegedly inciting the public to hatred and hostility. In recent months, several opposition politicians, journalists and others have been jailed as the government intensified its crackdown on dissent.

“We will continue to stand up for the religious and national values, culture, beliefs, societal identity, artists, and music of our unique country,” Mumcu said.