Soon serving video, and not just the musical kind, Spotify is set to settling into territory dominated by YouTube. Spotify's streaming video service launches first on web and Android, with other platforms set to follow soon after.
Spotify isn't saying much about its streaming video service right now. That's because it already spoke at length about it last May.
"We know there are times in the day you want to switch between music to catch up on the latest news, listen to your favorite podcast or simply watch something fun," Spotify said last May. "And with a stellar range of entertainment to choose from there's something for everyone."
Using its music lover-approved formula for recommending songs, Spotify will attempt to create a similar sticking point for those who like their video content served hot and steamy. The Spotify app will suggest music and audio show for users and will "learn what you love."
The service — which will be ad-supported for free users and ad-free for premium — will include content from big names such as ABC, BBC, Comedy Central, Adult Swim, Ted, NBC Universal, Vice News, ESPN and others. The service will, at least initially, offer clips from shows, but Spotify is already working with producers to create original content for it.
While it may seem that the launch of Spotify's video service was delayed, Shiva Rajaraman, Spotify's vice president of product, said the installation of it has been going as planned.
"We are at the end of a journey of testing," Rajaraman said. "We are going out effectively as planned. Our goal was largely to get a wide breadth of content and experiment and test."
The goal was to release the product when it was ready. What Spotify has been doing between now and last May has been testing, refinement and addition.
Over the last few months, Spotify has been working with content producers to bring more video to the service. That way, the service wouldn't have to change the minds of users after they found the initial content lacking.
In addition, Spotify has been testing the service in four of its launch markets. Although, less than 10 percent of its users in those markets have had a chance to give the service a go. But that'll change shortly, since Spotify is now actively advertising the new video service.
