Since 2021, Spotify has been presenting major updates and new features for both artists and its users at so-called “Stream On Events”. At “Stream On 2023” in Los Angeles, the company presented one of the “most drastic developments since the streaming service was founded”, according to its own statement. We took a detailed look at what’s new for users.
Spotify presents itself in a new design – and becomes TikTok?
The heart of the new app design is the so-called homefeed, which can be opened in the three subfeeds “Music”, “Podcasts” and “Audiobooks”. For example, if you click on “Music”, short videos – Spotify calls them previews on its website – are now displayed directly from playlists and albums. The same applies to the “Podcasts” and “Audio books” subfeeds. The previews should use the well-known strength of the streaming service and personalize the offer for the user.
The new search function has a similar structure. Here, users can scroll up or down to discover new favorites from short video clips of their favorite genres. The video previews will also extend to some of users’ favorite playlists, such as Discover Weekly and New Music Friday.
A preview of the home feed can currently be viewed at Youtube view. The new Spotify home feed is to be gradually played out as an update to all active users over the course of the next few days.
Video previews in the new Spotify home feed – users divided
So short clips that you can scroll through from top to bottom? For many app users, this sounds like another very popular service: the short video platform TikTok. While some users are excited about the new feature, others struggle with the visual approach.
“So you built TikTok into Spotify?” Asks a user, somewhat incredulous, under the “Stream On Event” video on YouTube. Another says, “Why can’t we just listen to music without the stuff flying across the screen like TikTok?”
Although opinions are divided about the new home feed, Spotify has introduced other changes that could be of interest to many users. As with music, an autoplay function has now been set up in the podcast area. In the future, when a podcast ends, another episode “that suits the tastes of the users and is relevant” should be played.
Spotify podcasts with surveys in the future
“DJ”, the new, personalized AI guide, which was presented by the company in February, is also set to become more of a focus in the future.
For content creators such as podcasters, singers and songwriters, Spotify has also announced some innovations at the event. A few examples: In the future, podcasters should be able to add polls to their podcast episodes. Artists will be able to add 30-second videos to their profiles and album pages in the future, allowing “users to delve deeper into the stories of their favorite artists.”
