Spotify is expanding its video podcast feature to all creators in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
In recent years, Spotify has experimented and expanded its video support. The first iterations came out in 2020, when the company signed an exclusivity agreement with The Joe Rogan Experience. The feature has since been implemented on podcasts such as The WAN Show and Tap In with Harry Jowsey.
With this release, creators will be able to upload files to Spotify's Anchor web platform and gain access to a collection of new podcast-specific features.
feature set
In total, there are six new features that creators can use to expand the reach of their show.
Users will be able to subscribe to their favorite video podcasts through Spotify Podcast Subscriptions. This way you can directly support creators and in return get access to exclusive content.
There's also a new partnership with Riverside.FM, an online recording studio for podcasts. It's meant to make remote recording sessions easy, and best of all, it's free for creators to record and publish video podcasts to Spotify.
At the bottom of the list is a new built-in video player to make it easier to share content, analytics to let creators know how well their show is doing, and new interactive features like polls and Q&A sessions. In this way, listeners can interact directly with the hosts of the podcast.
And finally, there's Bulk-replace on Anchor; a migration tool that allows creators to easily replace their audio-only episodes with the video version.
future releases
Spotify said it plans to launch video podcasts in other markets in the future, but did not say when or where.
He also teased new monetization features coming to Anchor; new ways for creators to make money from their podcasts, but he too was vague on the details.
But he mentioned a method. Spotify is adding automated ads to its Ads by Anchor service, giving third-party brands access to a podcast's audience. And as a final treat, Anchor has released a tutorial on how to make a video podcast.