After Apple announced a podcast monetization scheme, Spotify followed suit and creators will now be able to charge for exclusive content for subscribers.
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April
29, 2021
4 min read
Audio content is gaining more and more popularity and can now be an interesting source of income through Spotify . The streaming music app launched a podcast subscription program so creators can earn money by offering exclusive paid content .
This Tuesday, Spotify launched its new monetization scheme in the United States and plans to expand it to other regions and add more authors in the coming months.
Initially, the option will only be available to a select group of 12 podcasters, including ‘Tiny Leaps’, ‘Big Changes’ and ‘Mindful in Minutes’. Creators who want to access the subscription scheme can send their proposal today to sign up for a waiting list .
Additionally, Spotify promised not to charge creators a commission, at least initially. The only commissions that they will have to accept are those of Stripe, the electronic payment manager with which the platform was associated.
“For the next two years, this program will have no cost to the creator, which means that they will receive 100% of the income from their subscribers. Starting in 2023, we plan to introduce a competitive rate of 5% to access this tool, “ said Spotify in a statement .
This is how podcasts work for subscribers on Spotify
Once authorized by the platform, authors who want to monetize exclusive content will have to host the podcast on Anchor . Recall that Spotify bought Anchor in February 2019 for $ 110 million.
We’re creating more ways for more podcasters to monetize their work. Learn about Spotify’s Paid Subscriptions and Open Access Platform and how independent creators can now use the Spotify Audience Network. https://t.co/IxZUWTeIrm
– Spotify News (@SpotifyNews) April 27, 2021
Once the episode is uploaded, they must check the option ‘Only for subscribers’ . Podcasters will also be able to choose whether to shut down their podcast entirely or if they only pay for some of their content.
The price is predefined by Spotify and podcasters can choose between three amounts: 2.99 dollars (about 60 Mexican pesos), 4.99 dollars (about 100 MXN) or 7.99 dollars (160 MXN) per month.
According to The Verge , Spotify will allow importing paid feeds to other platforms . That is to say: if a person decides to subscribe to a podcast through Spotify, they will be able to listen to it through any other application (Overcast, Pocket Casts, etc.).
Subscriber-exclusive audios will be searchable within the streaming service and will even be recommended in a show’s main feed, but will be marked with a lock icon on the play button.
Spotify vs. Manzana
Spotify’s announcement comes just a week after Apple CEO Tim Cook unveiled a similar service during the first Apple Event of 2021 .
Starting in May, Apple Podcast creators will be able to choose or not to sign up for the subscription service. This will have an annual cost of 19.99 dollars (about 400 Mexican pesos) and will give access to the tools to enable the payment wall and other associated options.
In the case of Apple , the company sets the price of subscriptions and will keep 30% of the income at the beginning and 15% from the first year.