Warner and Sony Music groups suspend operations in Russia

nme.com:

writing a statement on their website that said: “Sony Music Group calls for peace in Ukraine and an end to the violence. We have suspended operations in Russia and will continue our support of global humanitarian relief efforts to aid victims in need.”Earlier this week (March 9), Universal Music Group also announced they were cutting ties with Russia.“Effective immediately, we are suspending all operations in Russia and closing our offices there.

We urge an end to the violence in Ukraine as soon as possible,” a statement from Universal read (via Variety).“We are adhering to international sanctions and, along with our employees and artists, have been working with groups from a range of countries… to support humanitarian relief efforts to bring urgent aid to refugees in the region.”The music groups are the latest business to announce their withdrawal from Russia following global condemnation of the war.

At the time of writing, the Russian invasion has killed at least 549 citizens, including 41 children. 957 civilians have been injured.Earlier this month, Live Nation announced they would not be promoting shows in Russia or doing business with the country, saying in a statement they were joining “the world in condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine”.Spotify, meanwhile, shuttered its Moscow office in response to the invasion, and said it would restrict the discoverability of content owned and operated by Russian state-affiliated media.

They stopped short of shutting off service to Russian users, saying they believe it’s “critically important to try to keep our service operational in Russia to allow for the global flow of information”.Netflix did shut down their streaming service in the country last week, with a spokesperson.