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Spotify is now expanding its streaming service to include educational courses in addition to music, podcasts and audiobooks. Company Tuesday announced launching a new feature called courses that will allow users to learn about topics in areas such as business, technology, lifestyle, music and more.
Spotify notes that the feature will initially be available to UK users.
The company has been working for some time to make its service known for more than just music. By offering different types of audio, Spotify can increase its revenue through different forms of monetization. This includes audio and ads video podcasts (even AI ads), as well as paid “download” hours for audiobooks for subscribers who use it add 15 free hours per month but I still want to listen. The company is also undercutting market leader Audible $10 monthly subscription to independent audiobooks.
If Spotify chooses to offer paid or ad-supported courses to a wider audience, it could also introduce a new revenue stream if the courses become more widely available.
The company pointed to several courses it recommends starting, including:
However, tech enthusiast and early adopter Chris Messina noted the development of courses before the official announcement. TechCrunch inquired about the feature, but didn’t hear back before Spotify published it blog post.
Notably, Messina’s findings suggest that there are courses in subjects that may appeal to a more technical crowd, such as learning about artificial intelligence, web3, the metaverse, and other digital tools.
In addition, he found users will be able to filter their Spotify Library to show only “Podcasts and Courses” instead of just “Podcasts” as it currently reads.
While Spotify hasn’t confirmed that the courses will be coming to the US, Messina discovered that they could. enter the section through search. However, the category pages here were empty, indicating that the US feature is still in development.
