By TAIYE OLAYEMI/RONKE OJEDIRAN

Spotify, an online streaming platform, held its 2023 “Stream On” programme, unveiling features and tools to build career of artistes, podcasters and music creators.

Daniel EK, Spotify’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), during the virtual programme said this was necessary to aid deeper and long-lasting connections between music creators and listeners across the globe.

He said Spotify doubled down on discovery, revealing a reimagined interface that leverages new visuals and a completely new and interactive design.

According to him, one of the features which is the “new Spotify experience” will roll out in waves beginning today to over 500 million monthly active users of Spotify.

He noted that with “Smart Shuffle”, Spotify was introducing a new way to inject new music that perfectly complements an existing playlist with just the tap of a button.

He said building on the success of podcast previews, creators can choose or have Spotify automatically generate preview of their music and podcasts for users to sample before they play or save.

“Just like with music, Spotify will now serve autoplay for podcasts. When a podcast ends, another episode will automatically start playing that fits the user’s tastes and is relevant.

“Stream On is about all the ways we are bringing Spotify to life and letting creators at all stages of their careers know that we are open for business.

“We are focused on building the best home for them – a place where they can establish a career, thrive and grow and where the world can be inspired by their creativity.

“And that is what we have been doing for almost 17 years: building, improving and reimagining this home to better meet creator needs and help them chart new pathways to success.

“As we look to the future, we are excited to expand that ambition to even more creators across new formats.

“We are enabling more creativity, discovery and personalisation than ever before by providing the best resources, support, and interactivity,” he said.

The CEO also unveiled new and enhanced tools to help creators build and grow audiences which would help artistes find the fans who will love their music most.

He shared more details on the next revenue line to help artistes grow – merchandise and live.

He also announced the rollout of additional podcast features.

“Spotify for podcasters now brings together the best of Spotify’s podcast creator tools into a one-stop shop to create, manage, grow and monetise podcast content.

“Previously, Spotify’s most innovative features were limited to anchor users exclusively, but the company is building the new Spotify for podcasters in a way that offers more open access to innovation.

“As a result, all Spotify for Podcasters users—including those not hosting their content on Spotify, will find access to Question and Answer and Poll functionality in their dashboards.

“Starting today, when all creators sign up or log in to Spotify for Podcasters, they will find a dashboard with everything they need to make, manage, and level-up their show,” he said.

He also announced new and expanded Spotify Originals and Exclusives.

“Spotify and DC Comics will launch a new podcast series, The Riddler: Secrets in the Dark which will be led by Phantom 4 and filmmaker, novelist, and comic book writer, David S. Goyer.

“Fans can expect all of the beloved characters from the “Batman Unburied” series.

“Today, there are more than ten million creators on Spotify with over half a billion listeners across 184 countries and markets.

“Think about the massive potential that represents for creators. No matter where you are on your own creative journey within music, podcasts or audiobooks.

“The potential to reach half a billion people. And that reach is about to become more powerful with what we’ve introduced today,” he said.

Gustav Söderström, Spotify’s Co-President and Chief Product and Technology Officer, said , “Spotify recommendations drive close to half of all users’ streams. And when listeners decide to follow a creator, they listen to, on average, five times more of their music.

“That’s why discoveries on Spotify, unlike many other platforms, give creators so much more than just a fleeting moment of viral fame.

“Those meaningful, long-term connections are a key part of what makes Spotify a platform for professional and aspiring artistes”. (NAN)

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