Spotify and Patreon’s integration, which allows podcast creators to distribute subscriber-only content through the Spotify platform, is now officially live for users worldwide.
The partnership between both platforms was announced earlier this year in March during Spotify’s annual Stream On event, which brought together content creators, artists, and podcasters to demo new tools and make exclusive company announcements.
“Spotify’s partnership with Patreon underscores our commitment to give creators more power and choice, and provide listeners with access to different types of content,” said Spotify co-president and chief product officer Gustav Söderström.
“Many podcasters use Patreon to connect with their fans, and, for the first time ever, they can link their accounts, and fans can access and listen to these shows on Spotify. This partnership gives podcasters a new opportunity to reach Spotify’s global audience, over 551 million users, to increase their income and grow their show.”
As part of the integration, podcast creators can distribute Patreon-exclusive episodes across a dedicated page on Spotify. To access this content, existing members can link their accounts on both platforms to listen to Patreon content on Spotify. For new listeners, Patreon content will appear with a padlock and “Paid” tag which then can unlock after being redirected to Patreon where they can either link their account and sign up for the creator’s Patreon membership.
Additionally, Patreon podcast creators can promote their Patreon content on Spotify with promotional banners added to the top of their existing free Spotify show page, which they can access through Spotify for Podcasters. This is available to any creator using one of Spotify’s integrated platforms including Patreon, Supporting Cast, and Supercast.
“We are incredibly excited about this partnership with Spotify where creators can seamlessly integrate Patreon’s industry-leading podcast membership tools to grow their business, host their listener community, and directly engage with their most passionate listeners,” said Patreon chief product officer Julian Gutman.
“The partnership between Patreon and Spotify represents shared values and a vision of a new future for internet creators. While some platforms focus on building closed systems that push creators and their fans farther apart, Spotify and Patreon are building a more open ecosystem that delivers greater value to everyone, particularly creators and fans.”
In addition to its integration with Patreon, Spotify Open Access allows external partners with existing subscription systems to publish podcast content on Spotify as well as restrict access to their content based on their paid model. This includes companies like Libsyn, which announced its Spotify integration in March through its third-party monetisation platform Glow.fm.
Spotify’s primary podcast platform competitor, Apple Podcasts, also added a new feature in June as part of its iOS 17 software update which allows listeners to connect eligible app store subscriptions to top apps with Apple Podcasts. With this feature, subscribers can then gain access to exclusive shows and other benefits from these top apps on Apple Podcasts.
