Spotify expands music video strategy with new pitching tool, global chart

The latest additions follow Spotify’s decision in June to allow a wider group of artists to directly upload full-length music videos, studio sessions, live performances and cover videos. The direct-upload feature remains in beta and is currently available to nearly 100,000 artists, according to the company.

Artists using the feature can potentially have their videos included in more than 100 video playlists available globally, including Today’s Top Videos and Best New Videos. Spotify also offers personalised and genre-focused video playlists such as Videos for You, ICONIC MUSIC VIDEOS, 90s Video Hits and Northern Nostalgia.

The platform has also introduced a pitching tool that allows artists to submit music videos to Spotify’s editorial team. Videos must either be unreleased or have been released within the previous seven days.

Spotify’s new Music Video Charts – Global ranks videos based on play volume. K-pop artists feature prominently on the inaugural chart, accounting for about a third of its 50 positions, while BTS occupies six of the top 10 places.

The expansion raises questions about Spotify’s ability to compete with YouTube in music video consumption, particularly as Spotify has historically been associated more strongly with audio and background listening.

The company has increasingly moved beyond short-form visual features such as Canvas, with its current video offering supporting full-length content. Uploaded videos must be in MP4 or MOV format, run for less than 20 minutes, feature a complete song and contain both audio and moving images.

Spotify’s growing video catalogue could also provide artists with additional opportunities to engage audiences and potentially drive streams to their wider catalogues. The expansion may also offer a way for listeners to access more artist-created visual content at a time when streaming platforms are grappling with the increasing volume of AI-generated music.

While Spotify has introduced measures such as its “Verified by Spotify” badge, users currently have limited options for filtering content based on artist verification. The platform's growing emphasis on studio sessions, live performances and music videos could provide listeners with more human-created content, although it remains to be seen how effectively the service can distinguish such material from AI-generated works.

Spotify’s latest moves form part of a broader push to establish a dedicated music video ecosystem within its platform, with the success of the strategy likely to depend on whether artists and listeners adopt the new features at scale.