It has been reported that Spotify is now supporting video podcasts, starting with a handful of shows that can be viewed by most free and premium users. The company announced the news yesterday, saying that all users where podcasts are supported will be able to not only listen to these shows but also watch them, both on desktop and mobile. However, Videos will start automatically when someone presses play, and they’ll sync with the audio feed. When the phone gets locked or the screen timed out, then the audio will continue.
Although, in May, Spotify announced an exclusive licensing deal with Joe Rogan, one of the world’s most popular podcasters, who releases video version of his show on YouTube. As part of that deal, he’ll also be taking his video show over to Spotify, so it had to build this functionality to prepare for Rogan. The company has started testing the new function with popular YouTubers. They will now compete with YouTube but all videos can be uploaded to YouTube channels and used to run ads in case.