Spotify adds video and podcasts to music streaming service

Spotify will be adding news bulletins, podcasts and video streaming to its content line-up as it aims to diversify its services for a wider range of customers.

The new content will come under the 'Now' umbrella, presented in a completely new start page for existing Spotify users, interspersed with the core music services.

BBC Minute is one of the new shows Spotify will offer, a round-the-clock news service aimed at younger listeners that has been available on other platforms since its launch in April.

Disney, ESPN, TED, Conde Naste, MTV and NBC will also offer content to Spotify.

The music streaming app will also add a feature that changes the music someone's listening to to fit with their movement, based on feedback from a smartphone. For example, if they are running it will suggest faster music, while if they are moving slower, it will slow down.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said: "Today we're introducing a new Spotify experience that's more accessible, personal and usable than anything in music.

"There were a lot of times when people wanted to use Spotify but had to leave it to come back for five minutes or 10 minutes of entertainment. View this step as how we expand music to more places in your life."

The plans are part of Spotify's aims to make the content you are exposed to more personal for you. It will tailor content to everyone's wishes, whether that's listening to music while working out, the news headlines on the way to work or watching a funny video on the commute home from the office.

Its expanded service is now available in the US, UK, Germany and Sweden on the iPhone and it will be rolling out to other platforms in the coming months.

Clare Hopping
Freelance writer

Clare is the founder of Blue Cactus Digital, a digital marketing company that helps ethical and sustainability-focused businesses grow their customer base.

Prior to becoming a marketer, Clare was a journalist, working at a range of mobile device-focused outlets including Know Your Mobile before moving into freelance life.

As a freelance writer, she drew on her expertise in mobility to write features and guides for ITPro, as well as regularly writing news stories on a wide range of topics.