Spotify is testing a new feature that lets users skip audio and video ads, even without being on a paid subscription—The feature, known as “Active Media,” will allows users of Spotify’s free, ad-supported service to skip particular ads, with advertisers only paying for completed listens or views.
Danielle Lee, Spotify’s global head of partner solutions explained to Adage.
“Our hypothesis is if we can use this to fuel our streaming intelligence, and deliver a more personalized experience and a more engaging audience to our advertisers, it will improve the outcomes that we can deliver for brands. Just as we create these personalized experiences like Discover Weekly, and the magic that brings to our consumers, we want to inject that concept into the advertising experience,”
According to Spotify, Active Media feature is the “first of its kind globally” and will allow the company to “learn from each interaction” and “deliver a more personalised ad experience.” There’s no word yet on if or when the feature will expand beyond Australia, but Spotify has billed the feature as an “evolution” of its advertising model.
When an ad break comes up, users will be able to choose whether they see or hear the ad in question, or whether they want to skip the ad all together. The selling point for advertisers? Spotify will now know more about user’s preferences and be able to better target advertising in future.
This might also be a way for Spotify to make more per ad for those ads that don’t get skipped. It also improves the overall experience of the company’s free tier service, which could spur at least some of those users to spring for the premium version. And, of course, paying attention to ads you don’t skip will tell Spotify a little more about you.
This feature has rolled out in testing last month and only in Australia. And hopefully soon it rolls out to a global audience.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
