Spotify is no longer just thinking about songs, podcasts, and audiobooks anymore. The platform wants to challenge YouTube and TikTok with a new video strategy to become a major player in the video world too. The platform just concluded a new licensing agreement that gives it audiovisual rights.
The platform signed a deal with the US-based National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) over the streaming service’s ‘bundle’ royalties in the US. Both parties are creating a dedicated online portal where music publishers can choose to sign a direct agreement with Spotify. By opting in, these publishers give Spotify the legal permission to use their songs in music videos and other expanded video formats within the United States.
In addition to that, the streaming giant has begun rolling out a series of new features to support this motive. This move is one of Spotify’s most ambitious transformations since its launch. Very soon, streamers will soon be able to switch from listening to a track to watching its official video without leaving Spotify.
The licensing agreement gives Spotify the rights to host a large catalog of music videos from major record labels. The company is also heavily investing in video podcasts, a format that has exploded over the past two years. Spotify now hosts hundreds of thousands of video shows, and the numbers continue to grow.
The platform says viewer engagement with video content has been rising steadily. The platform emphasize that these engagements prove that users want more than audio when consuming their favorite shows. To further boost the video-podcast, Spotify signed a distribution partnership with Netflix.
The Spotify-Netflix partnership will begin in 2026, allowing select Spotify video podcasts to appear on Netflix. This will give creators a chance to reach millions of new viewers beyond Spotify. For Netflix-Spotify partnership signals a clear intention for Spotify. The platform has been wanting to be seen not only as a music platform, but also as a competitive video service with global reach.
Well, all we see is that Spotify is using these new deals and features to keep users engaged and to attract new creators as music streaming growth has slowed down especially in the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US). So, Spotify needs to offer something new to keep up with the pace, otherwise, the platform might end up being left behind.
Video is a new competitive tool that gives the company a new way to keep people on the app longer, attract advertisers, and compete with platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and even Netflix. But only time will tell if Spotify can truly challenge these video giants. For creators, it opens the door to higher earnings and a wider audience beyond the platform.
