Spotify: dynamic video sponsorships and more

• Spotify announced dynamically inserted video sponsorships are due for launch in April, allowing creators to add and remove sponsorships. Scheduling and measurement will also be offered. It’ll work with both Megaphone and Spotify for Creators - and others (see below).

  • This a feature that YouTube announced in September - but YouTube’s feature will only be available for “a small group of creators” early this year, and the company has yet to announce a date for a full rollout.

• Spotify announced a distribution API for video - allowing users to publish and monetise video content on Spotify direct from participating hosting platforms. Acast, Libsyn, Podigee, Audioboom and Omny Studio are the launch partners. Dynamic video sponsorship management will be available through these partners too.

  • The launch date for this is “soon”. FlightCast used a pre-release API at launch in October. It’s, of course, dependent on integration with launch partners. (Who’ll be first?)

• Spotify made a significant change to its Spotify Partners Program, which offers a share of Premium video revenue and advertising - by lowering its eligibility requirements. Now, you’re eligible if you host on Spotify for Creators, have 1,000 Spotify audience members over the past 30 days (the figure was 2,000); you need 2,000 Spotify hours consumed over the last 30 days (the figure was 10,000); and just three published episodes (that’s down from 12). This is already live - if you’re now eligible you’ll see that in the Monetize tab in Spotify for Creators.

  • Spotify’s new eligibility requirements are now comparable to YouTube - which needs 1,000 subscribers (not just audience members), and 4,000 valid public watch hours in the last 12 months.

• Spotify launched new podcast studios in Hollywood. Spotify Sycamore Studios has a number of flexible recording rooms, and will serve as home to The Ringer. Access will also be made “by invitation only” to selected video creators in the Spotify Partner Program.

• Spotify also announced that the platform has contributed more than $10bn to the podcast industry over the past five years.

  • We asked the company how they calculated this number. A spokesperson would only tell us that “it reflects a mix of our contributions in technology, distribution, and direct creator payouts”.
  • If you wanted actual creator payout figures from Spotify, they shared some creator earnings for Jan 2025 (“Hundreds of creators surpassed $10,000”); and for Q1/2025 (a total of $100mn), but the company has not shared any numbers since. We’re promised that Spotify “will continue to share milestones”.
  • Apple Podcasts would, we’d suggest, have a significantly higher claim: the app is responsible for 37.4% of all podcast consumption, and unlike Spotify, Apple sets open standards used by the whole industry, and it runs the open, de-facto, podcast directory for most other apps via the iTunes API. Based on global revenue, we’d put its industry contribution, just in the last five years, at more than $25bn.

• In a surprise, Rob Walch is no longer working at Libsyn as VP of Podcast Relations. “After 18 and a half years at Libsyn, I was told in December the company wanted to go in a different direction and my services were no longer wanted. I will miss working at Libsyn and with the friends I have there,” he said, as he looked back at his time at Libsyn in the latest episode of PodCast411. The news comes after the sudden closure of The Feed and the departure of Elsie Escobar in November.

  • There is no-one who is more knowledgeable about podcasting. Next week, he’ll be speaking at Podfest (Friday, 10.55am, in “Oceans 12”) (recommended!), he is introducing Julie Samuels as a Podcast Hall of Fame inductee (Fri, 7pm, “Oceans 1-2”), as well as simultaneously appearing in the movie “Age of Audio” (Fri, 7pm, “Oceans 12”). (Podnews readers save 10% off any ticket)
  • In PodCast411 today: “As a wise person said to me this week, when one door closes, another opens. On that note, if you have a door to open, you can learn more about my experiences by going to my LinkedIn page.” We wish him well.

• Podpage has released a brand new feature - turning key phrases into site-wide links, without manual work. “When you set a focus key phrase for an episode, blog post, or video, Autolink scans your entire site for that phrase. Wherever it appears, Podpage automatically links it back to the original content.” It’ll help with SEO and more use of your back catalogue. (Podnews readers save $25 off your first bill).

• Mathew Passy has launched Download My Podcast - a tool to help you almost instantly download the entire contents of your RSS feed direct to your cloud storage. The tool means you don’t need a massively fast internet connection, or a large hard drive; it’s perfect for people wanting to take backups or switch podcast hosts.

• Just one service led to $100,000 in additional revenue for True Native Media; Magellan AI has released a full case study of how the companies have worked together to recover revenue and sales growth.

People News

• Willard Foxton is to leave podcast creator Novel, after five years working for the company as Head of Development then Creative Director. “I’m off to something new and properly exciting,” he says.
• Joe Copeman has joined Global Studios as Director of Commercial. He was most recently the Global SVP of Advertising at Acast, and had worked with Acast for more than eleven years.

Podcast News - with Airwave

With Airwave: Earn and Invest gives thought-provoking conversations to empower you to earn and invest wisely. Today, the show discusses the positives and negatives of CoastFI. Don’t know what CoastFI is? It might just be the most reasonable way to reach financial independence.

If you’re an American and you live abroad - or you’re a British expat, perhaps, living in America, We’re The Brits In America could help with avoiding double taxation and all the fun and games that happen when you’re the citizen of one country but live in another. A new rebrand of an existing show, it goes live today.

JADED is brand new today, from Indigenous House. The video podcast hosted by Indigenous organizer, impact producer, and storyteller Jade Begay, talks about leadership failures, the unglamorous side of success, and maintaining one’s identity.

A new show from Pixiu Podcasts, I Rest My Case, explores the world’s most intriguing true crime cases, hosted by two distinguished British and American criminal defence attorneys, Jonathan Goldberg KC and Dean Strang. Weaving fascinating personal anecdotes from their illustrious careers in criminal law on both sides of the Atlantic, Jonathan and Dean take listeners behind the curtain to reveal stories of their most unpleasant (and pleasant) criminal clients, the roots of the British and American justice systems, and why these systems so often get it wrong.

As wellness culture reaches fever pitch, it’s easy to see why so many struggle amid conflicting health advice. Enter The Method – Health in the Real World. Hosted by Dr. Greg Potter (PhD in sleep and metabolic health) and former Team GB triathlete Charlie Edmondson, you’ll hear them tackle the big questions: Do glucose monitors work for non-diabetics? Is cold plunging worth it? Does protein timing matter? Expect evidence-based conversations helping you separate breakthroughs from expensive distractions. It’s from healthtech company Thriva.

In Three launches Season 2 with a Golden Globes recap that goes beyond the broadcast! Drawing on Danielle Graham’s years covering the Globes and reporting from the red carpet, she and co-host Caleigh Rykiss unpack the parties, off-camera moments, and conversations you didn’t see. You’ll also hear the latest celebrity news, offering sharp analysis and insider context on the stories shaping Hollywood right now.

Surviving Trump is back for a new season, explaining what they say is really driving Trump’s second term: panic among powerful White conservatives that they are losing numerical and political dominance as America becomes more diverse. The season starts with a six-episode series showing how fear of losing power turns into policy, and why today’s fights over elections, immigration, and civil rights all trace back to one goal: preserving White political control in a changing nation.

Season two of Loud & Lifted starts with a conversation about toxic bosses. You’ll hear leadership expert Lynda Harvey break down three classic types — the micromanager, the narcissist, and the bully. Expect real talk, practical tools, and the reminder you probably need: you’re not “too sensitive”… you’re just not paid enough for this.