Cath Virginia / The Verge Spotify is going all in on video.The company will soon begin paying creators based on how much engagement their videos receive from paid subscribers. Automated ad breaks in videos will also be turned off for paid Spotify subscribers to encourage more consumption. Both of these changes go into effect starting January 2nd, 2025 in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada.Paying video creators directly based on engagement puts Spotify on more of a collision course with YouTube, which is also leaning into podcasts and already pays its creators billions a year in shared ad revenue. We can provide an experience for your audience that is superior to any other platform," CEO Daniel Ek said onstage Wednesday at a Spotify creator event in Los Angles.... Continue reading...

Cath Virginia / The Verge Spotify is getting support for Google's Gemini Extensions, which will allow users to search for and play music using the generative AI assistant with natural language requests. The extension was first spotted in the code of the Google app in June, and now it's rolling out to compatible Android devices, as reported by 9to5Google.Gemini can play music found by song titles, artist names, album names, playlist names, or for a particular activity, but at the moment, it won't create playlists or radio stations on Spotify. One thing to be aware of is that if you've already linked another music service like YouTube Music, you'll need to verbally say (or type in) which service you want Gemini to use as part of your initial request, and from... Continue reading...

Cath Virginia / The Verge Spotify and Universal Music Group have signed a new multi-year agreement that could result in a tiered subscription approach aimed at providing extra perks for superfans." The two didn't announce any specifics, including the number of years the deal lasts, but UMG says it's consistent with a Streaming 2.0" vision it presented to investors last year.UMG chairman and CEO Sir Lucian Grainge called the agreement precisely the kind of partnership development" the company hoped for when describing Streaming 2.0. That presentation envisioned a Super-Premium" subscription for superfans that could mean things like early access to music, exclusive deluxe editions, hi-res audio, and artist Q&As. The companies have been rumored to be discussing such a deal for months. Screenshot: Universal Music Group UMG's concept for a new subscription tier for superfans. UMG also referenced Streaming 2.0 when it signed an agreement with Amazon Music last month, as World Music Business pointed out when it broke news of the Spotify agreement prior to Sunday's announcement.The deal also appears" to increase royalty rates, the National Music Publishers Association told Variety. The outlet pointed out yesterday that the NMPA and others had criticized Spotify over changes last year that led to lower mechanical royalty rates for songwriters, spurring an NMPA complaint to the FTC.Sony Music Publishing also criticized Spotify's royalty changes, and even considered options to challenge them. It's not clear if Sony or any other publishers are in talks for similar deals with Spotify, but that could change in light of the UMG deal, which Billboard notes is Spotify's first direct deal with a music publisher since the Music Modernization Act passed in 2018.