Spotify is one of the worst things that ever happened to music. I consider myself both a music lover as well as a supporter of free software, and Spotify manages to do serious harm on both of those fronts. With regards to music, the harm it has caused is honestly irreparable, and sadly, I don't think there is a solution. This blog post is basically me just ranting, but the topic has come up lately and I want to explicitly write down why I hate this company so much.
First and foremost, Spotify is proprietary software. This means you do not have the four essential freedoms when using it. Freetard or not, the inability to understand, modify, or study what a program is doing is always a negative. In today's world of mass surveillance, you should assume that any modern, proprietary software datamines you. In fact, Spotify does do exactly that as their own privacy policy page explains. Like what Google does, Spotify collects all sorts of metadata about you and your listening habits to "personalize" and "customize" content just for you.
Of course, data surveillance apologists will say Spotify is only using these things for benevolent reasons and for the benefit of the customers. Perhaps, that is true. However, data is money and power in today's modern world. By allowing Spotify to collect all of this information about you, you are allowing them to have significant power over you. What if Spotify changes their private policy to something more Orwellian? What if their database is breached and this information is reached? What if something you listen to is suddenly deemed "offensive" by the social mob and data is leaked? There are risks to using this. And for what benefit? It might be more slightly more convenient (arguable). Is it worth it? My answer is "no."
Additionally, Spotify has DRM. This is another thing that is unacceptable. It's a vendor lock-in technique designed to keep you dependent on the Spotify platform forever. With the other formats (CDs, DRM-free downloads, vinyl, etc.), you have complete freedom and control over your music collection. You can rip into whatever format you want. You can listen to it however you want. Hell, you can even create your software (excuse my self promotion) to play back your music. With DRM, you can't do any of this. You are 100% dependent on Spotify. You must use their program. You can only select from their library. They let you download songs for "offline" use, but those are riddled with DRM. You aren't in charge; they are.
The effect on software is certainly bad, but thankfully there is a clear cure. Use file formats that are free and open source (flac, opus. vorbis, etc.) and use a music player + media decoder that is also free and open source (mpv, ffmpeg, deadbeef, gstreamer, etc.). There are many choices, and they all preserve your freedom. What's much more insidious and depressing is how Spotify has negatively impacted music as a whole: both in terms of business and as an art form.
Spotify fucks over small labels and musicians. Musicians get pennies from these streams. Most of the money from the ad revenue and subscription goes back into Spotify's pockets: not in the artists hands. Don't be deluded into thinking that streaming somehow supports bands. Even popular bands with millions of streams don't receive that much money relatively speaking. For smaller artists, they'll get virtually nothing. What makes this even worse is that you can't afford to not be on Spotify anymore. Society has changed and so has the way people consume things. Even though more hardcore fans will likely still purchase a CD or something more substantial, the casual fan will never leave Spotify's walled garden. If you aren't on Spotify, you might as well not exist.
This has a negative impact on music culture as a whole as well. It encourages people to be passive consumers and listeners instead of active ones. Of course, I don't advocate for consumption just for the sake of consumption. I am fairly certain I enjoy the styles of music that I do largely because of my own choice and freewill. Nobody told me to start liking experimental extreme metal. I actively discovered it and found it myself. With Spotify, people tend to stay in their own corners and not explore. Music becomes "what did this software algorithm recommend me" instead of "what other artists have a similar songwriting approach."
The only treatment for cancer is complete removal. Spotify is something you should reject completely. Don't allow some megacorp to control what you listen to. Don't allow "hey is this band on spotify" to become part of your vocabulary. If you truly enjoy music and want artists to succeed, avoid Spotify like the plague. Defenders will talk about how it's "convenient" (i.e. I can't spend a few seconds to copy and paste files on a microsd card) or how the recommendations are good (i.e. I need a computer to tell me what to listen to next). Reject these arguments. The pros (if there are any) do not outweigh the cons (which there are tons). Fuck Spotify. Normal people are essentially enslaved to it now, but I refuse to contribute to that caner. Do your part and say no to Spotify as well.