Spotify is testing recording audio reactions for music playlists by automatically uploading them to the streaming service as a podcast episode.
- What is happening? Spotify is testing a new feature that lets you record audio reactions that are automatically uploaded to the service as podcast episodes.
- Why care? Because custom sound reactions are not your typical feature in a music service. And also because audio reactions can increase user engagement by encouraging other like-minded people to post their own reactions.
- What to do? If you are participating in this test, test the feature by answering the prompt while listening to the playlist. You can also manually start recording your audio reaction by tapping the microphone icon on the playlist page.
Who’s Ready for Spotify Sound Reactions?
According to a Reddit user, people included in this test may see a prompt when listening to a playlist asking them to record an audio reaction.
“So what do you think?”it reads. “Record an episode to share your thoughts in a playlist.”Spotify confirmed in a statement provided to TechCrunch that it is currently running this limited test with a small number of users.
“We’re currently doing limited testing of in-app audio creation, but we can’t share the details just yet,”the company acknowledged.
The recording interface includes basic editing options that allow you to tag your recording to make it easier to find, the ability to add background music, and more. You can also create your own post title, add a poster, and write a short description.
If you used explicit language, there is a switch for that. To define an audience for a post, tap the “Who will see this?”When you’re done, click “Publish”and the app will upload your audio response to the service as a new podcast episode. Read: How to embed episodes from Apple Podcasts on your website
When will Spotify release this feature?
Spotify often experiments with interesting features, and some of them never go public. For example, Spotify recently began testing an experimental feature that allows users to record and publish podcast episodes right from the app. However, at the time of this writing, the feature is still limited to a small pool of Spotify customers residing in the US and New Zealand.
Based on user feedback during the testing phase, the company will determine whether to turn off audio reactions or make them more accessible to other users. It all depends on whether the testers will accept this feature or not.
Can it become a thing?
At the moment, spending time recording your audio reaction, which is then uploaded to the service as a podcast episode, doesn’t seem to be a mainstream feature. We can easily be wrong given the popularity of react functions in other services.
It’s almost like when the iPhone got a front camera. At first no one cared about taking pictures of themselves. But things quickly changed, and no one foresaw this. At the time, you would be hard-pressed to find someone who really knew that selfies were going to be such a big thing. So maybe the sound reactions on Spotify are like one of those features that people don’t know they need until someone provides it for them.