Spotify wants to be the internet’s #1 destination for podcasts–but is it?
It’s spent hundreds of millions of dollars acquiring podcast production companies and individual shows like The Joe Rogan Experience. Why? Because it really wants to get big in the video podcast space–and the platform that’s already big in that area is the behemoth YouTube.
While signs point to growth in video podcast viewership on both platforms, we’ve seen indications that YouTube might still be leading Spotify when it comes to creator adoption. Indications like Alex Cooper deciding to move the video version of her chart-topping podcast Call Her Daddy–as well as the video version of every other show produced by her network Unwell–off Spotify in favor of YouTube.
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“We cannot comment on a creator’s agreement with another platform or what steps it might necessitate regarding their content on Spotify,” the platform said in a statement about Cooper’s decision. “We can say that tens of millions more podcast fans are watching video podcasts on Spotify than ever. We can also tell you that video podcasts are growing at their fastest pace ever, so clearly, creators and audiences alike are embracing the medium, and lighter ad loads, on Spotify.”
In an effort to keep creators close, Spotify is now introducing Creator Milestone Awards–its own version of YouTube’s Play Buttons.
But instead of sending creators awards whenever they hit a certain number of subscribers, like YouTube, Spotify will do quarterly “evaluations” of all the podcasts on its platform and send bronze, silver, and gold plaques to shows that have hit 100 million, 250 million, and 500 million streams, respectively.
“Spotify remains the ultimate destination for podcast creators, with more than 1 billion people having listened to a podcast on Spotify since we entered the space in 2019,” the platform said in a company blog post. “And for the first time, we’re introducing the Spotify Creator Milestone Award to recognize the journey, growth, and streaming success of podcasts around the world.”
The goal is “setting a new standard for podcast achievement and honoring the many record-setting shows on our platform,” it added.
Some shows receiving the first batch of Creator Milestone Awards include…
Bronze (100 million streams)
–David Dobrik and Jason Nash‘s VIEWS
-true crime podcast Rotten Mango, hosted by Stephanie Soo
Silver (250 million streams)
–Dateline NBC‘s weekly show hosted by longtime correspondent Andrea Canning
-educational podcast Stuff You Should Know, hosted by Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant
Gold (500 million streams)
–The Joe Rogan Experience
–Crime Junkie, hosted by Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat
These are only the shows Spotify chose to highlight in its blog post. The full roster of shows who’ve hit 100 million, 250 million, and 500 million streams is available here.
Most of these, like Rogan’s show, are total non-surprises based on previous disclosures from Spotify and previous third-party data. We are a little surprised, though, that Spotify chose to highlight Dateline NBC, a corporate news show, in the blog post for it its inaugural Creator Milestone Award feature. YouTube has historically faced contention for giving Play Buttons and press space to channels like T-Series, which is also owned by a media corporation. (Editor’s Update: Spotify tells us it was not “editorially driven” in choosing which shows to highlight in the Creator Milestone Awards blog post; those selected, it says, are simply examples of shows that have crossed the relevant listenership thresholds.)
Spotify has been closemouthed about podcast performance data–both audio and video–to date, so it will be interesting to see quarterly hard data about which shows have the biggest audiences on Spotify.
As for the creators who’ll receive these awards, they can expect personal hand delivery, Spotify said. Plus there’s a few extras:
“Award recipients will be hand-delivered a physical Spotify plaque, they’ll be spotlighted across Spotify’s social channels, and will be featured in a new editorial hub on-platform,” it said. “We’re also releasing a marketing campaign to highlight some of our first award recipients at New York City’s Penn Plaza.”
We’re curious if Spotify’s move here will successfully draw in more creators. YouTube’s Play Buttons have become coveted items to work toward, and if Spotify’s are similarly received, it could boost creator engagement with Spotify as a platform.
