Can I Play Spotify in My Business in New Zealand?

Short answer: no. Spotify, including Premium, is licensed for personal, non-commercial listening only. Playing it in a shop, café, salon, gym or any New Zealand business where customers or staff can hear it breaks Spotify’s terms of service, regardless of which plan you are on. The same applies to Apple Music, YouTube and Amazon Music. A personal subscription covers you at home, but never across a commercial floor.

Two separate problems

First, Spotify’s terms explicitly prohibit commercial use. Second, even if Spotify did allow it, you would still need a public performance licence from OneMusic New Zealand (APRA AMCOS and Recorded Music NZ). Spotify covers streaming rights, not the commercial right to play music where the public can hear it. In New Zealand, that public performance right is administered by OneMusic NZ and actively enforced under the Copyright Act 1994.

OneMusic NZ actively contacts businesses playing unlicensed music. They send letters, make phone calls and visit premises, and businesses are also reported by competitors and former staff. “Too small to notice” is not a real category.

These services also log when an account streams the same playlist for eight hours a day, seven days a week, and licensing bodies treat that for exactly what it is: a business playing music without a licence. See the real penalties businesses face in New Zealand.

What playing music legally normally costs

Business type	OneMusic NZ licence + music source (per year)	Melodial (per year)
Small retail shop (around 150m², digital music)	NZ$1,320+	NZ$99.99
Café or restaurant (small venue)	NZ$1,056 to NZ$1,236+	NZ$99.99
Hair or beauty salon (under 100m²)	NZ$1,092 to NZ$1,176+	NZ$99.99
Gym or fitness studio (recorded music, classes)	NZ$2,784 to NZ$6,288+	NZ$99.99

OneMusic NZ fees are based on published rate schedules and vary by business type, size and music use. Totals shown include a typical separate music streaming subscription.

And that is just the licence. You still need a music source on top.

What to use instead

Melodial is built for exactly this problem. Every track in the catalogue is owned or directly licensed by Melodial, and none of it is registered with OneMusic or any other collecting society. Your subscription is your licence: the music, the commercial rights and a downloadable Certificate of Compliance, all for NZ$9.99 per month.

1. Subscribe to Melodial, NZ$9.99 per month, no contracts.
2. Play Melodial exclusively and switch off Spotify, radio and CDs.
3. Download your Certificate of Compliance as instant proof you are fully licensed.

Frequently asked questions

Can I play Spotify in my business in New Zealand?

No. Spotify’s terms of service prohibit commercial use, even with Premium. You would also need a separate public performance licence from OneMusic, which costs hundreds or thousands per year on top.

Can I play YouTube or Apple Music in my business?

No. Their terms do not cover commercial use either. Playing them in a business is copyright infringement under the Copyright Act 1994.

Will Spotify know I am using it in my business?

Streaming services log usage patterns, and a consumer account streaming the same playlists all day every day leaves a clear record of commercial use. Licensing inspectors also visit venues in person.

What is the legal alternative to Spotify for business?

A directly licensed service like Melodial. It includes the music and the commercial licence in one subscription for NZ$9.99 per month, with a Certificate of Compliance you can download instantly.