Spotify Introduces Video Feed to Engage Listeners

Picture: Spotify

Spotify Technology is determined to be the go-to platform for users to discover their next favorite artist or podcast, instead of TikTok or YouTube.

The Swedish music-streaming giant recently launched a video feed for its app, called "Previews," which recommends music, podcasts, and audiobooks via short clips, similar to TikTok and YouTube Shorts. The algorithmically generated clips or those chosen by the artist or podcaster showcase the hook of a song or a key part of a podcast to entice users to save the content to their libraries to listen to later.

According to Spotify co-presidents Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström, the key to retaining users is being involved with the moments when they first hear new content, which they call "foreground discovery." Although the company has benefited from viral TikTok trends, it wants to offer its own content recommendations instead of relying on other platforms.

Despite being unprofitable, Spotify has experienced strong user growth and is now focusing on streamlining its operations. The company has spent over $1 billion on podcast companies and talent since 2019, leading to the departure of many executives who were involved in the podcast strategy.

However, Spotify's co-presidents, Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström, stand by the costly podcast strategy, which helped the company quickly become the largest podcast platform by certain metrics, according to audio-data tracker Edison Research. They explained that the move was necessary to break into the stagnant podcasting industry and put the company in the position it is in today. Now, the company is focused on tightening its spending and making good on those investments.