Spotify Pays Over $100 Mln To Podcasters In Bid To Challenge YouTube's Dominance

(RTTNews) - Spotify has paid podcast creators and publishers more than $100 million since January 2025, the company revealed ahead of its first-quarter earnings report.

The payout reflects the success of Spotify's new Partner Program, launched earlier this year to offer additional financial incentives beyond traditional advertising revenue, particularly for video podcast engagement.

The initiative marks Spotify's aggressive effort to claw back market share from YouTube, where more than half of Americans now watch podcasts, according to Edison Research. Despite Spotify's 170 million monthly podcast listeners among its 675 million global users, YouTube remains the dominant platform, having paid $70 billion to creators between 2021 and 2024.

Spotify's Partner Program allows eligible creators to earn not only from ad impressions but also from premium subscribers' video consumption. Since the program's rollout, video podcast viewing on Spotify has increased by more than 40 percent. The company has also introduced ad-free video experiences for premium users in select markets to further boost engagement.

Podcasters are already seeing tangible benefits. David Coles, creator of the horror podcast "Just Creepy," reported a jump in his quarterly Spotify revenue from $45,500 to $81,600 after joining the program. Comedy network YMH Studios, which produces "2 Bears, 1 Cave," also said its Spotify revenue more than tripled.

Spotify, which turned its first full-year profit in 2024, continues to distribute some of the world's biggest podcasts, including "The Joe Rogan Experience."

As the platform prepares to report earnings, the focus will be on whether its $100 million bet can drive long-term growth and tilt the balance of power in the increasingly video-driven podcast market.