Spotify plans to spend half a billion dollars on podcast-related acquisitions and it’s just made its first move toward improving podcast discovery in the form of a new playlist that combines podcast episodes and music recommendations.
Dubbed Your Daily Drive, the news-focused playlist was designed for people who commute frequently in their vehicles, according to The Verge. The playlist test features music that fits your interests and short news that weren’t made by Spotify.
The Swedish music-streaming giant, which now counts more than a hundred million paid subscribers, has confirmed the test in a boilerplate statement to the publication, saying “We’re always testing new products and experiences, but have no further news to share at this time.”
The feature is being tested with a small subset of users in a Portuguese-speaking country, but it’s unclear if a wider rollout might be happening anytime soon.
Apple’s iTunes is and has been the most-traficked podcast directory but Spotify wants to challenge that. Earlier this year, Spotify snapped up podcast networks Gimlet Media and Parcast, as well as podcaster creation and hosting platform Anchor. On top of that, the company has funded original podcast programming.
Promoting these shows heavily is one of the ways Spotify wants to increase engagement and advertising .(unlike Spotify, Apple does not sell advertising against iTunes podcasts).
Spotify is also challenging Apple’s “agency” model and the 15-30 percent fee the Phone maker takes on App Store sales in an antitrust complaint filed in March with a European competition watchdog, prompting Apple address Spotify’s accusations with an open letter on its website.
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