Spotify
is
officially
adding
support
for
music
videos,
the
company
announced
today.
The
audio
streaming
service
describes
the
feature
as
a
“beta”
with
only
a
“limited
catalog”
available
as
of
today
in
11
markets.
Supported
artists
include
Ed
Sheeran,
Doja
Cat,
Ice
Spice,
Aluna,
and
Asake,
with
Spotify’s
global
head
of
consumer
experience
Sten
Garmark
telling
TechCrunch
that
Spotify’s
full
music
video
catalog
will
eventually
include
“thousands”
of
songs.
The
music
video
feature
is
accessible
via
the
Now
Playing
screen
on
supported
tracks,
where
a
“Switch
to
Video”
icon
will
appear
above
the
song
title.
Tapping
it
will
restart
the
song,
and
start
playing
its
music
video
in
the
center
of
the
display.
You
can
rotate
an
iOS
or
Android
device
to
play
the
music
video
fullscreen,
and
tap
“Switch
to
Audio”
to
return
to
the
more
traditional
Now
Playing
interface.
The
feature
is
currently
available
in
a
limited
number
of
markets;
the
UK,
Germany,
Italy,
the
Netherlands,
Poland,
Sweden,
Brazil,
Colombia,
Philippines,
Indonesia,
and
Kenya.
Garmark
says
these
markets
were
chosen
“based
on
a
number
of
criteria
including
market
size
and
the
availability
of
local
content
support.”
As
well
as
iOS
and
Android,
Spotify
says
the
music
videos
feature
is
also
available
on
desktop
and
TV
devices.
You’ll
need
to
have
a
Premium
subscription
to
watch
them.
Although
primarily
an
audio
streaming
service,
Spotify
has
long
supported
various
forms
of
video,
whether
it’s
video
podcasts
or
short
vertical
videos
called
Clips
that
are
designed
to
let
artists
talk
directly
with
their
fans.
With
its
new
music
video
feature,
Spotify
says
it’s
aiming
to
give
artists
another
way
to
hook
in
listeners
and
turn
them
into
fans.
Original author: Jon Porter
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