If an artist takes the medium seriously, a music video can make the song it’s attached to better. There are actually some songs that I love purely because the visuals of the video fit the song so well. And so I’m personally pleased to see Spotify adding the option to watch music videos to its app.
Spotify Adds Music Videos in More Countries
In March 2024, Spotify added music videos to its app for Premium users in 12 territories. Considered a beta test, it must have gone pretty well, as the streaming service is now rolling out music videos to 85 additional markets, bringing the total number to 97.
Music videos are still limited to paid users, with free users excluded from using this particular feature. However, Spotify is still billing this as “Music Videos in Beta,” so there’s a chance that once the beta comes to an end, music videos will become available to everyone.
According to Spotify, users who discover a song and then watch the music video are 34% more likely to stream it again the following week than users who just listen but don’t watch. People are also 24% more likely to save or share a song discovered with the music video than just the audio.
Spotify has made some welcome improvements to the experience since March too. Video indicators next to track names make it easier to see which songs have a video attached, you can watch a video in full screen by rotating your device, and the video will pick up at the point you switched (rather than start from the beginning again).
Watching Videos Is a More Active Experience
Watching music videos on Spotify is extremely simple. If you see a Switch to Video button on a song, click it to watch the video. While watching the video, there will be a Switch to Audio button instead, so with a single tap, you can click back.
I have been watching music videos on Spotify since the beta began in March, and have enjoyed having the option. Watching videos is a more active experience than simply listening to audio, so I’m not always in the mood to do the former. But when a song with a video I love starts playing, it’s hard to resist switching. I’m also more likely to make it to the end of the song rather than skipping to the next.
Like the addition of podcasts and audiobooks (the former making Spotify my podcast player of choice), adding videos to Spotify makes it more of a one-stop shop for entertainment. While I would have formerly had to open YouTube to watch a good music video, I can now do so without ever leaving the Spotify app.
