CAPE CANAVERAL: On Wednesday, the world’s largest audio streaming service Spotify introduced new tools for musicians and songwriters, with a focus on video formats, which are seen as becoming increasingly important as the service struggles to make a profit.
The Swedish-owned business also unveiled a significant redesign to provide a more interactive user interface, including the option to hear song previews and use artificial intelligence to provide more individualized recommendations.
Spotify also announced that it will surpass 500 million monthly active users by the end of 2022, with 10 million creators and 205 million paying subscribers, at a live-streamed marketing event.
The music industry was in freefall when we started Spotify. Therefore, the fundamental question that everyone was pondering was, “Is the music industry doomed or could it be reimagined and still be a viable career option for talented artists worldwide?” said Daniel Ek, who founded Spotify.
“We now know, more than 15 years later, that the answer is yes. Streaming is helping an increasing number of artisans advance “said Ek, who has delegated regular duties at Spotify to co-presidents Alex Norstrom and Gustav Soderstrom.
Although the platform, which went live in 2006, quickly rose to become the most popular audio streaming service in the world, it has struggled to demonstrate the viability of its business model.
In recent years, Spotify has made significant investments in podcasts, audiobooks, and live audio in an effort to expand beyond music.
Spotify claimed that the redesign would make it simpler for artists to sell merchandise and tickets to live events like concerts.
According to Sulinna Ong,
According to Sulinna Ong, a Spotify executive, they will also be allowed to upload 30-second videos to their album page and profile in order to compete with clips shared on social networks such as TikTok and Instagram, which “do not ensure that the audience will subsequently go listen to the entire song.”
“Streaming has already democratized listeners’ access to music. “We are democratizing access to marketing for artists with these new tools,” she stated.
The organization, which said in January that it was cutting practically 6% of its labor force to diminish costs, posted an overal deficit of 430 million euros for 2022.
Despite strong subscriber growth and an advantage over rivals like Apple Music and Amazon Music, Spotify consistently posts annual losses.