Spotify has settled the $1.6 billion lawsuit filed by music publisher Wixen Music Publishing in December 2017. The publisher, which represented artists like Tom Petty, Missy Elliot, Stevie Nicks and Neil Young, alleged copyright infringement, saying that Spotify was using tens of thousands of songs without a proper license. The financial terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but Spotify still needed to file a disclosure to shareholders that the $1.6 billion was not awarded. Wixen had also claimed that Spotify “neither obtained a direct or compulsory mechanical license” for the use of its artists’ works. Though Spotify has faced a number of lawsuits from rights holders over the years, including one it settled for $43 million back in 2017, the Wixen suit was focused on Spotify’s use of the artists’ tens of thousands of songs without proper compensation. The complaint had alleged that Spotify disregarded United States Copyright law and has committed willful, ongoing copyright infringement,
Instead, Spotify and Wixen have jointly agreed to a finally dismiss the lawsuit.