Spotify is adding more non-music content to its app, including news reports and video content, as the streaming service looks to take on the likes of YouTube.
At an event in New York, Spotify demonstrated the “video capsules” that will run on the new version of the platform, from companies including Vice News, Comedy Central and ESPN.
The short clips are closer to the content offered by YouTube than they are to longer form video on services like Netflix.
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek described it as a “massive leap forward”.
The new platform puts more emphasis on playlists designed for times of the day, including music but also news and video.
The full list of new partners includes:
• ABC
• Adult Swim
• BBC
• Comedy Central
• E!
• ESPN
• Fusion
• Maker Studios
• MTV
• NBC
• RadioLab
• Slate
• TED
• TWiT
• Vice News
• WNYC
Spotify has more than 60 million regular users across 58 countries. It says about 20% pay for its premium ad-free subscription services.
Ek said that represents more than half of the global market in “streaming dollars”.
The company said it had also taken steps to match the music tracks it suggests to the various activities users engage in throughout their day.
This includes a new running mode, which matches music to the pace of the subscriber based on feedback from their smartphone’s built-in sensors.
The firm said it had also created a new type of audio format that allows a song’s tempo to be altered to match a runner’s footsteps while keeping it in tune.
The move also bolsters Spotify ahead of Apple’s expected launch of a dedicated music streaming service.
Including podcasts brings Spotify in line with iTunes, and Ek also announced that musicians including Iggy Pop would curate playlists.
Apple has been hiring DJs including Zane Lowe, formerly of BBC Radio 1, to curate its services.
