Spotify

As big tech companies are increasingly investing in podcasts, Spotify on Thursday announced the acquisition of startup Podz, which is focused on AI technologies to enhance audio content discovery. The company wants to integrate Podz’s technologies to push its own podcast platform.

Spotify announced today a new global campaign called “Only You,” an in-app experience with personalized playlists to celebrate its users’ uniqueness. The new feature is accessible via the Spotify for iOS application and it comes with six different in-app experiences.

Spotify’s chief legal officer Horacio Gutierrez has said that he likes Apple products but considers the company a disingenuous bully.

Gutierrez made the remarks in an op-ed in the WSJ, and in an interview with The Verge …

Following its expansion into the podcast segment, Spotify is now investing in audiobooks for its platform. The company announced on Thursday a new partnership with Storytel Group that will bring audiobooks to its users.

A Reddit user was able to find the Spotify HiFi menu in a song in its iOS app, which could indicate the new subscription tier could be launching soon. This finding happened as Apple Music just announced its Lossless audio quality with Dolby Atmos and Spatial Audio support coming in June.

Spotify has inked another major deal to lock a popular podcast into its own ecosystem. Dax Shepard and Monica Padman’s hit show Armchair Expert, which currently sits near the top of the Apple Podcasts charts, will become a Spotify exclusive on July 1.

Spotify has announced an update today for both iOS and Android that brings a redesigned “Your Library” tab. Changes include a new grid view, dynamic filters, improved sorting, and more to better access all of your music and podcasts in one place.

The number of Spotify paying subscribers hit 158M during Q1 of this year, says the company. It adds that North America was its strongest market.

Apple has remained quiet about its Apple Music paid subscriber base, but there are likely a couple of explanations for this …

On Monday, Spotify announced it was going to raise its subscription prices starting next month. With Apple Music prices staying the same, for now at least, the Apple One bundle could become even more tempting for users to subscribe. In fact, for many Apple fans, now could be the time to make the jump.

Last week, Apple announced a new Apple Podcasts Subscriptions platform that will launch next month, likely as part of iOS 14.6. To counter Apple’s announcement, Spotify announced today that it too will allow podcasters to offer subscriptions to their shows on its platform.

Subscribers in Europe are today being notified of a Spotify price rise. For UK users, the increase is either £1 or £2 per month, depending on the subscription type. Elsewhere in Europe, it ranges from €1 to €3.

The news coincides with the announcement of a new Spotify music player embedded into the iOS and Android Facebook app …

In April, I decided to give Spotify a try over Apple Music. As an Apple Music subscriber since day one, I always wondered how it was using Apple’s most important competitor in the music streaming war. After almost a month, I finally decided whether I’m going to stay as a Spotify subscriber or switch back to Apple Music.

The latest antitrust hearing looking into concerns about Apple and Google’s market power is underway. Along with the companies getting a grilling from the Congressional subcommittee on antitrust, representatives from Spotify, Tile, and more are testifying about how they see the two tech giants as stifling competition.

After Spotify unveiled its first hardware product on Tuesday, it’s today launching a new Top Podcasts and Trending Podcasts Charts feature. This comes as Spotify continues to ramp up its competition with Apple Podcasts.

Spotify has officially launched its new in-vehicle device, “Car Thing.” The smart player comes with support for “Hey Spotify” voice commands as well as a knob, touch screen, and preset buttons for controls. For the initial product launch, Spotify is giving out Car Thing for free to a limited group of Premium subscribers in the US.

For quite a while I’ve been thinking about switching from Apple Music to Spotify. I’ve been an Apple Music user since day one and rely on the Apple ecosystem for everything (from AirPods to HomePod and all other Apple devices), so I thought this would be a tough decision.

In April, I decided that I’d finally give Spotify a chance, and I’ve got some initial thoughts: the good, the bad, and all the surprises along the way. A couple of weeks from now, I’ll give my final opinion on whether I stick with Spotify or whether I return to Apple Music.