Spotify wants to be the next big video service

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Get ready for more video content on Spotify. Later this month, the service will begin integrating music videos into its app, giving US-based subscribers the ability to easily switch between audio and video versions of many popular songs.

And Spotify doesn’t stop there. “We’re not just building features, we’re creating a best-in-class video experience to rival the biggest players, like YouTube or TikTok,” the company announced in List of recent jobs. Spotify is “evolving from an audio-first platform to also become a world-class video service,” the job listing states.

Spotify’s expansion into music videos comes after the company struck licensing deals with major labels and the National Music Publishers Association specifically this fall. Provisions included For audio and visual rights.

“These deals secure broader video rights that we have long needed,” Alex Norstrom, Spotify’s chief business officer, explained on the company’s website. Latest earnings call last month. “This has been a critical strategic goal for us because it unlocks our ability to innovate and launch more products and features.”

Spotify has also been busy adding other forms of video content, with Norström revealing during the same earnings call that it now has nearly half a million podcast videos and shows on its platform. More than 390 million users have streamed videos on Spotify, and time spent watching videos has doubled year-over-year, according to Norstrom.

Media Research Managing director Mark Mulligan believes Spotify’s embrace of video is a sign of the times for the online music business, which is starting to hit the roof in Western markets. “Music streaming is getting into a phase of improvement,” says Mulligan. “The last 10 years have been about growth; the next 10 will be defined by consolidation.”

Since most consumers willing to pay for music are already subscribers to the streaming service, Spotify’s focus must shift to increasing its share of the audience’s time, retaining paying subscribers, and better monetizing those in the ad-supported tier. This means that the service isn’t just competing with Apple Music and other music streaming services anymore, but with anything else that keeps our eyes and ears occupied, whether that’s TikTok, Netflix, or even video games.

Spotify is also at a disadvantage because music tends to be a background medium for many people, Mulligan says. “Adding video helps Spotify drive interest,” he says. “Among all forms of entertainment, music is the thing consumers are least likely to pay attention to – just under a third focus on the music they listen to when streaming. Adding video requires more senses and therefore attention.”

There is one platform that has already achieved this combination of music and video: YouTube. The Google-owned video service has long been the most popular destination for free music, with MIDiA finding in a consumer survey this summer that 67 percent of consumers watch music videos on YouTube monthly compared to 45 percent who stream music for free and 37 percent who have a music subscription.

Additionally, YouTube has its own music subscription service in YouTube Music, which benefits from its close integration with the site’s massive video catalog. “It’s a visual medium in the world of entertainment defined by video,” Mulligan says. “YouTube (Music) is also the only global player other than Spotify that is growing at a rapid pace. So, although it is not the biggest competitor to Spotify, it is probably the most serious competitor at the moment.”

In light of all this, Spotify is poised to make some unusual alliances to grow its video audience. The company announced a deal with Netflix to bring it Bill Simmons Podcast and other Spotify podcasts to the video service in October. It’s not the only partnership of this kind: Spotify has done it too Collaborated with Samsungwhich publishes a free linear streaming channel pre-programmed with episodes from Spotify-like podcasts Dave Chang Show and Rewatchable.

In addition to additional revenue, Spotify also expects these deals to generate additional interest in Spotify podcasts, which could then lead to more eyeballs flocking to Spotify itself.

The big question now is: How far is Spotify willing to go in its embrace of video? Will the company open its doors wide and allow anyone to upload their own clips as YouTube and TikTok do?

The company declined to comment when asked about its plans moving forward with video, but I wouldn’t hold my breath for Spotify to come full circle with TikTok. Allowing you, me, and my Facebook conspiracy theory-loving uncle to upload our unfiltered rants to the service would come with enormous challenges regarding copyright and content moderation.

However, the lines between amateurs and professional creators are still blurred. Spotify already allows artists to upload reel-like videos 30-second vertical videos. The company too He added such clips From podcasters and audiobook authors to 2025 Spotify Wrapped.

The next logical step would be to bring on board a select group of music industry influencers, believes Audrey Marshall, COO at Thematic. “Music curators have become some of the most popular creators on TikTok, where their frequent recommendations of songs, artists, and playlists lead to the discovery of new music across all music genres and genres,” Marshall wrote in his article. Recent blog post.

This is despite the fact that TikTok itself is not the best engine for such recommendations. “Right now, in order to get the latest artist recommendations from a TikTok DJ, you need to open TikTok, hopefully get their content recommended in your feed, watch their video, leave TikTok and open Spotify to search for the artist, etc., etc.,” Marshall wrote. “Wouldn’t it be more efficient to watch that video directly within Spotify and then simply click to play the artist’s music instantly?”

Whether Spotify follows Marshall’s recommendation or not, it’s increasingly certain that video will be a key part of Spotify’s future — on phones, TVsAnd everything in between.