Spotify Faces Refreshed Suit Over Royalty Math After Bundle Win

Royalty clearinghouse Mechanical Licensing Collective filed a fresh complaint against streaming giant Spotify USA Inc. after it escaped claims earlier this year that accused the streamer of cheating artists out of royalties.

Although a judge ruled in January that Spotify’s Premium service qualifies as a “bundled” service of music and audiobooks, the MLC is now arguing that doesn’t let the streamer off the hook. The company still manipulated the price of its Audiobook Access component to game the royalty math calculated through revenue reporting requirements under copyright law, according to the amended complaint filed Wednesday.

The crux of the MLC’s ...