Spotify today announced a new video podcast feature for select podcasts, available in all markets where podcasts are supported. With the update, Spotify Premium and free users will be able to watch podcasts that have recorded video on the platform.
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Spotify said that at launch, podcasts with video include "Book of Basketball 2.0," "Fantasy Footballers," "The Misfits Podcast," "H3 Podcast," "The Morning Toast," "Higher Learning with Van Lathan & Rachel Lindsay," and "The Rooster Teeth Podcast." More podcasts will gain support as the feature rolls out.
The new feature allows select creators to bring both audio and video content to Spotify, enabling them to connect more meaningfully with their listeners, expand viewership, and deepen audience engagement. It’s a way to enrich the audio experience—for fans and creators alike.
To start watching a video podcast, users simply need to press play on the Spotify desktop or mobile app. Any supported podcast will automatically play and sync with the audio feed. Listeners will also still be able to download the podcast audio to listen on the go, and video podcast audio will still play when multitasking between apps or when locking your device.
In recent years, Spotify and Apple have been competing to build the most popular podcasting platform. According to a recent report from Bloomberg, Apple is now working on creating its own original podcasts to further entice people to use Apple Podcasts.
The new video podcasts on Spotify will begin rolling out today.
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Not everything comes down to receiving information in the most expedient way possible. You might be shocked to learn that some people enjoy the experience of listening to someone, especially if they have personality or a particular expertise.I so don't get the whole podcast thing for most info-dissemination genres. It takes so much longer to absorb info from a video or audio podcast than to just read a transcript or an original piece of writing.
OK I do get the appeal of a video take for something like "how to..." -- how to fix a piece of gear or use some sewing machine attachment or get a piece of fine carpentry to hang together beautifully.
I mean everyone has probably struggled at least once with textual info that reads like "after you remove the gizmo from the thing to the left of it (and don't forget to put the screws to one side since they are not the same as the ones you took out of the other thing), you just flip up the cable and pull out that little plate from underneath it, no problem, and then you can reach the tray that holds the drive assembly." Half an hour of deciphering that and you yourself could probably then make a tragic video of how well your understanding of that piece of text has worked out.
But for regular old basic "infotainment" applications - news, politics, and that infernal and ever burgeoning wannabe "influencer" genre, seems like a waste of time to watch someone say for 20 minutes what we just could read in a tenth of the time (if the podcaster could only write?).
It's funny when people act like podcasts are some insane, radical, experimental format that suddenly arose in the past few years and that their popularity is incomprehensible. It's simply oral storytelling, the most ancient and proven format for disseminating information and ideas.