Technology

Changes in Spotify-Owned Findaway Voice’s Terms of Use Sparks Industry Concern

Published

2 years ago

February 27, 2024

The Coalition of Concerned Creators outlines changes, reactions and sources for literary creators to learn more as new Findaway Terms of Use generate confusion and concern

NEW YORK, Feb. 27, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Spotify-owned Findaway Voices recently introduced new terms of use for its Audiobook Product, a platform used by authors to publish their audiobooks on major services. As a result, the new terms sparked significant concern among authors and rights holders, prompting many to swiftly attempt to cancel their contracts or voice their concerns on social channels.

“At the moment this was announced, it became clear that this would pose an immediate threat to the livelihoods of thousands of independent authors and creators,” said the Coalition of Concerned Creators. “We have seen what happened to musicians when Spotify forced new terms and royalty changes on them, and we should all be hyper-cognizant of how Spotify could try to exploit authors in the same way.”

Findaway Voices and Spotify’s contentious history of licensing terms and its undervaluation of artists and creators has intensified concerns.

In the initial email detailing the changes, the updated terms would have allowed Spotify to use independent authors’ work without paying royalties, sparking immediate backlash from indie authors, narrators and author groups. The terms initially stated, “You hereby grant Spotify a non-exclusive, transferable, royalty-free, fully paid, irrevocable, worldwide license to reproduce, make available, perform and display, translate, modify, create derivative works from, distribute, and otherwise use any such User Content through any medium…you also agree to waive, and not to enforce, any “moral rights” or equivalent rights, such as your right to object to derogatory treatment of such User Content.”

The backlash against these new terms was so intense that Findaway Voices did immediate damage control, modifying them the very next day. Despite the update, there are still questions that have yet to be answered about the extent of Spotify’s rights. The Society of Authors “urged Spotify to explicitly clarify in their terms of use that no works will be used in the development of any type of generative artificial intelligence model or product without creators’ permission.”

“I terminated my contract with Findaway Voices,” said R.J. Blain, an author and a member of the Coalition of Concerned Creators. “I was in their Royalty Share (Voices Share) program, and I informed them I was not accepting their terms of use promptly after they announced the changes. They are attempting to force me into paying their cancellation fee for refusing to accept their terms of use. I have said no.”

Authors and narrators have been advised to review the updated terms and consider their options carefully.

In a first-response statement to the coalition, Orna Ross, the Founder of the Alliance of Independent Authors, said, “Our Watchdog, John Doppler, has been in touch, and we’re waiting for Findaway to come back to us on the issues raised.”

To learn more about this ongoing incident, you can read the following resources and articles:

Society of Authors: SoA urges Findaway Voices by Spotify to clarify new Terms of UseAlliance of Independent Authors: Self-Publishing News: Findaway Voices Terms – What’s Really Changed?Bloomberg: Spotify and Independent Audiobook Authors FaceoffWriters Beware: Outrage Over New Terms of Use at Findaway Voices Forces ChangePublishing Perspectives: UK’s Society of Authors: More Clarity in Spotify’s Terms

About the Coalition of Concerned Creators
We are writers, musicians, literary agents, and other creators demanding transparency from Spotify. Specifically, we are concerned by the streaming giant’s new audiobook streaming offering and the impact it will have on author compensation, the value of books, and the literary industry more broadly.

Press Contact: concernedcreators@gmail.com

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SOURCE Coalition of Concerned Creators

Technology

Bonree Powers Global Digital Finance with Intelligent Observability

Published

8 minutes ago

April 27, 2026

DONGGUAN, China, April 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — From March 31 to April 2, 2026, the second Huawei Global Financial EcoWeek, themed “Inspire • Collaborate • Achieve: Reshaping the Future of Finance”, was held in Sanyapo, Dongguan. The event brought together over 400 attendees from Huawei partners across more than 30 countries and regions, including over 60 independent software vendors (ISVs) and over 120 system integrators (SIs) in the financial industry. As global financial data volumes surge, customer demands diversify, and regulatory requirements evolve, financial institutions are accelerating their digital and intelligent transformation. Observability and intelligent operations technologies enable institutions to detect system anomalies in real time, optimise performance, and ensure business continuity, while cross-regional and cross-institution collaboration is becoming a key driver of industry innovation.

At the event, NTT Data signed a partnership agreement with BONREE DATA TECHNOLOGY Co., Ltd. (Bonree), marking the launch of a renewed global financial ecosystem under the “SI Value Growth Plan.” As the first publicly listed company in China’s Application Performance Management (APM) and observability market, Bonree is advancing its globalisation strategy with established operations in Hong Kong SAR, Singapore, and Malaysia. The company has already secured orders worth millions in the Hong Kong and Macau region. Bonree complies with internationally recognised standards, including SOC 2 Type II and CMMI Level 5. Its self-developed LLM-powered observability platform has been selected for Huawei Cloud’s international baseline solution library, reflecting recognition from global cloud ecosystems and supporting its expansion with a “global deployment, local compliance” approach.

Bonree serves over 1,000 leading clients worldwide with system monitoring, performance optimisation, and intelligent operations solutions. Leveraging proprietary unsupervised knowledge graph root cause analysis technology and AI-driven intelligent analytics, Bonree delivers plug-and-play monitoring and fully managed adaptive alerting systems that detect anomalies quickly and accurately with minimal noise. With 56 authorised invention patents and 135 software copyrights, as well as 24/7 global technical support, Bonree maintains an NPS of 79 and a client satisfaction rate of 95%, reflecting its deep overseas market presence and trust among international financial institutions. With these core strengths, Bonree continues to lead in global fintech and digital operations, helping clients ensure business continuity and digital transformation while striving to become a leading global player in APM and observability.

CONTACT:
Yao Xiaohan
yaoxiaohan@bonree.com
+8618210189324

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SOURCE BONREE DATA TECHNOLOGY Co., Ltd.

Technology

HZICC: The 2025 Hangzhou Highlights Awards Celebrating Visionaries Elevating the City’s Global Profile

Published

8 minutes ago

April 27, 2026

HANGZHOU, China, April 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — What does the world see when it looks at Hangzhou? The Hangzhou & Friends: 2025 Hangzhou Highlights Awards, unveiled on February 4, offered an answer—not through statistics alone, but through the stories of connection that unfolded across the year.

The awards were born from a simple recognition: that a city’s global presence is built not only on grand events, but on the countless moments when people reach across borders. To honor this, the organizers structured the awards into four chapters: Dialogue of Civilizations, Industrial Narratives, Social Innovation, and Moments of the Year, each capturing a different way that Hangzhou touched the world.

Across these categories, moments of quiet resonance stood out. In the realm of cultural dialogue, ten friends from ten nations explored Hangzhou for the first time, their journeys later echoed by the city’s own return visits to Istanbul and Cairo. After the visits, a German photographer’s image of Qiandao Lake’s giant net fishing found its way to the pages of The Times, Hangzhou’s bond with Verona deepened into a year-long romance of music, art, and shared celebration, proving that sister-city ties can bloom into something far richer than ceremony.

On the Liangzhu Day of 2025, the “Liangzhu and the World: Dialogue between Liangzhu Ancient City and Rome Ancient City” was held—one of several moments when the region’s archaeological treasures found new resonance on the global stage. Beyond culture, the awards recognized how Hangzhou’s industries are telling Chinese stories overseas, from Geely’s global development to the rise of cross-border e-commerce that brings Hangzhou products，and the culture behind them directly to international consumers.

Yet there were also countless other people and moments that helped the world know Hangzhou. An international student from Pakistan filmed the city he had come to call home, capturing not just its landmarks but the feeling of belonging. A volunteer from Zimbabwe found himself holding hands with local police and strangers in a human chain at West Lake to maintain traffic order, discovering that being welcomed means being trusted to help. The Hangzhou International Conference Center became a stage for cross-cultural encounter, while Hangzhou’s tech-themed travel routes offered visitors a chance to explore the city’s cutting-edge innovations.

Together, these moments traced a portrait of Hangzhou not as a place that simply welcomes visitors, but as one that listens, shares, and grows, through the people who carry its stories onward.

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SOURCE HZICC

Technology

Flagship Tablet to Highlight Huawei Innovative Product Launch in Bangkok

Published

8 minutes ago

April 27, 2026

BANGKOK, April 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Huawei officially announced the “Now Is Your Spark” Innovative Launch Event, due to be held in Bangkok, Thailand on May 7, 2026. This launch event will unveil a comprehensive lineup of flagship tablets, wearables, and smartphones. Empowering daily life with technology and exploring future frontiers through innovation, Huawei aims to inspire every user through intelligent experiences across all scenarios.

As one of the highlights of this launch event, the flagship tablet HUAWEI MatePad Pro Max will make its global debut. The HUAWEI MatePad Pro series has consistently delivered comprehensive experience breakthroughs with best-in-class productivity and creativity. This new device is Huawei’s best tablet yet, with a lightweight design, PC-level productivity, and PaperMatte Display, opening new possibilities for work, creation, and creative expression.

In the wearables sector, the HUAWEI WATCH FIT Series continues to gain widespread recognition from global consumers. By April 2026, shipments have exceeded 24 million units, setting a new benchmark in the fashion sports smartwatch market. The series offers a lightweight, comfortable wearing experience while providing professional sports guidance and health management features. At the Huawei Innovative Launch Event in Bangkok, the all-new HUAWEI WATCH FIT 5 Series will debut. It is set to become the ideal companion for users to express personal style, explore sports enjoyment, and monitor health around the clock. Additionally, this launch will introduce the HUAWEI WATCH GT Runner 2 Racing Legend Edition, specially designed for marathons with its upgraded data analysis capabilities to scientifically support every step of the run. Moreover, Huawei plans to unveil its first jewelry smartwatch designed in partnership with renowned international jewelry designer Francesca Amfitheatrof—the HUAWEI WATCH ULTIMATE DESIGN Spring Edition. Also making a grand return after five years is the next-generation premium kids watch, the HUAWEI WATCH KIDS X1 Series.

In the smartphone segment, HUAWEI nova 15 Max will deliver an upgraded experience for global consumers. Leveraging strengths in imaging technology, battery life, and reliable quality, it is an ideal companion for young people to capture life’s moments and unleash their creativity.

Now Is Your Spark— every individual can light up the world to drive change, and technology serves as the torch to ignite, connect, and amplify this force. By giving passion a voice, inspiration a purpose, and expression a stage, Huawei aims to empower consumers worldwide to write their own stories with innovative technologies.

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