Spotify is significantly widening the reach of its podcast partner program, making it available in 35 additional countries this fall. The expansion brings the service’s total footprint for the initiative to 35 regions, adding major markets such as Italy, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Poland, Chile, the Dominican Republic, and the Bahamas.
This move represents the streaming giant’s largest geographic rollout for its creator monetization program, which allows podcasters to earn income through a combination of advertising revenue and Premium subscriber sharing. Eligible creators will be able to generate revenue from both audio and video content. Specifically, video views from Premium subscribers and ad-supported revenue from free users contribute to earnings. Notably, Spotify confirmed that podcasters retain full rights to revenue from direct sponsorships and are permitted to distribute their shows on other platforms without penalty.
The company noted that video podcast consumption on its platform has jumped by 140% since the feature debuted in 2022. Financially, the impact has been substantial; Spotify reported that total monthly payouts to podcast creators have risen by more than a third since adjustments were made earlier this year.
These increased payouts follow a change in eligibility criteria implemented in January, which lowered the barrier for creators to monetize video content. Under the updated rules, creators can apply for monetization if their show has at least three published episodes, along with 2,000 consumption hours and 1,000 engaged audience members over the preceding 30 days. Spotify stated that this policy shift resulted in an average 45% increase in consumption for participating shows.
Previously, the partner program was limited to the United States, various European nations, and Australia. With the latest expansion, Spotify aims to further incentivize content creation across its global user base.
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