Fitness
10 September 2025
Wondering if you can play Spotify in your business legally? Learn the legal considerations and requirements to avoid fines and keep compliant.
Playing music in your business elevates the atmosphere and creates a more welcoming environment for customers. However, playing music protected by copyright in your business without a licence or permission from copyright owners, including when streamed from services like Spotify, can lead to infringement of copyright.
In Australia, courts have imposed significant financial penalties on businesses that perform music without the appropriate permissions.
This guide explains whether you can use Spotify in your business and why a OneMusic licence enables Australian businesses to play music protected by copyright; the music your customers likely want to hear.
Spotify is a Swedish audio streaming and media service provider. It is one of the largest providers of music streaming services, with more than 600 million monthly active users. Basic features in Spotify are free with advertising included in the content. Advertising-free listening is via a paid subscription.
Businesses should understand that using a Spotify service in a commercial setting, like stores, cafés, dance schools or offices etc, is likely to be a breach of the terms and conditions of the service’s end user agreement. You should check with your service provider.
No matter where you have sourced your music from, or what you have paid for it, if you play copyright-protected music in your business then you will likely need a public performance music licence. OneMusic is not a music supplier, like Spotify. OneMusic issues ‘public performance’ music licences on behalf of music creators from Australia and all around the world.
Want to legally play music in your business? Get a OneMusic licence today.
As set out in their terms and conditions, Spotify is only for personal, non-commercial use. To play music in or for a business, Spotify have a commercial product called Soundtrack.
Using Spotify to play music that is protected by copyright in your business without permission - or a licence - may infringe the copyright in that music.
In Australia, the Copyright Act (1968) makes it a legal requirement to get permission to play copyright-protected music in a business setting, regardless of what industry you operate in - a retail shop, office, fitness centre, public event etc - or how you play music.
Businesses that play copyright-protected music from Spotify without an appropriate ‘public performance’ licence may be infringing the copyright in that music.
Failing to obtain a music licence can result in a court ordering payment of significant financial damages that result in costs for a business that are far greater than the original licence fees they would have originally paid.
In one case, a Melbourne hospitality venue was fined nearly $200,000 for playing popular music without a licence. The judgement handed down by the Federal Circuit Court found that the business owner disregarded the rights of musicians despite numerous attempts at contact.
Copyright law exists to protect creators from losing income from their creative works, so it not only pays for business owners to be aware of their legal obligations when it comes to playing music, it also helps artists continue to create the music we all love.
In short, every business that plays copyright-protected music likely requires permission to ensure they are not infringing copyright and risking significant financial consequences. Acquiring a OneMusic licence is an easy way for businesses to obtain permission to legally play the vast majority of the world’s repertoire of copyright-protected music in their business.
To avoid breaching the terms of use of your personal Spotify account, you can opt for music services that are intended for use in businesses. These services are called Commercial Background Music Suppliers and include Spotify’s own version called Soundtrack.
While some Commercial Background Music Suppliers include in their price a OneMusic ‘public performance’ licence , others don’t. In any case, a licence to play copyright-protected music would still be needed even if you use a Commercial Background Music Supplier, unless that supplier was only delivering music that does not require a ‘public performance’ licence .
A OneMusic ‘public performance’ licence is not required if you only play:
You should be aware that playing music in your business from your personal Spotify account Spotify is a breach of Spotify’s terms and conditions.
In any case, no matter where you have sourced your music from, or what you have paid for it, if you play copyright-protected music in your business then you will likely need a ‘public performance’ music licence. A ‘public performance’ music licence from OneMusic provides permission to play the vast majority of the world’s repertoire of music in Australian business.
Businesses that play copyright-protected music from Spotify without an appropriate ‘public performance’ licence may be infringing the copyright in that music. Failing to obtain a music licence can result in a court ordering payment of significant financial damages that result in costs for a business that are far greater than the original licence fees they would have originally paid.
OneMusic provides music licensing solutions for businesses, covering the right to perform the vast majority of the world’s copyright-protected music in a business or public setting.
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Public performance music licensing is where the owners of copyright in music grant permission for others to play their music in a public setting. In practice, music is publicly performed when played at retail stores, public events, like food and wine festivals, and in restaurants and bars, gyms, and dance schools.
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A penalty from a copyright infringement is not called a 'fine'. They are called 'Damages', but they still reflect costs a Court says a business has to pay for infringing. Businesses are often unaware they may be infringing copyright when playing music in their premises and, if a business plays music protected by copyright without permission, it can end in legal proceedings with thousands of dollars in damages payable by that business.
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