Global giants bring Middle east music into pay-per-stream era

The Arab music industry — plagued by rampant piracy, free YouTube clips and dated channels — is the new target for global streaming giants intent on bringing the outmoded business into the digital era.

After their successes in Europe and the Americas, online platforms are looking to invest in emerging markets in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and capture their large populations of hyper-connected youth.

In a region plagued by political turmoil and economic crises, streaming giant Spotify is hoping to blow the dust off a Mideast business that has failed to keep up in a world of paid-for digital content.

“We arrived with a fully Arabic service, localised playlists and a local team,” Claudius Boller, Spotify’s Middle East and Africa managing director, told AFP.