The Taylor Swift effect? Spotify reportedly will restrict music for free users

• Apple backs down on non-payment of artists

​Los Angeles - Spotify Ltd. will let some artists offer their new releases only on its paid service for a period of time, according to people with knowledge of the matter, in a major concession to music labels.

The move, as told to the Wall Street Journal, is a departure from the company's current practice of requiring all music to be available on both its free streaming service and the monthly paid version.

They asked not to be identified discussing a matter that hasn't been announced.

Spotify is backing down after pressure from record companies and artists such as Taylor Swift, Adele and Coldplay, who have withheld records from free services in a push to generate more revenue from music streaming.

The industry has withered over the past decade because of piracy and the shift to online listening -- most recently with free streaming, which cut into download sales from Apple Inc.'s iTunes store.

In November, The Verge reported that Adele, whose album 25 might becoming the best selling album of all time, has asked Spotify to limit access to her upcoming album to paying users.

Earlier this year Taylor Swift made headlines by insisting that Apple Music pay artists during the free trial of their streaming service. The tech giant agreed.

Last week Coldplay released A Head Full of Dreams last week but kept it off of Spotify, thereby avoiding free streaming.

"We explored a wide range of promotional options for the new Coldplay album and ultimately decided, together with management, that Coldplay and its fans would best be served with the full album on both free and premium this Friday," Spotify said Tuesday in a statement.

Washington Post with Bhakthi Puvanenthiran