“If we’re successful in building a two-sided marketplace and developing the tools to own demand creation, then I think we’ll land comfortably in. This represents an aggressive move into user-uploaded audio content for Spotify. Traditionally, that’s been the domain of SoundCloud, which offers artists the chance to upload unlimited tracks, plus access to insight tools, when they sign up to a Pro Unlimited account for $15 per month or $135 per year. ( SoundCloud also offers a free, limited option which caps a user’s total uploads to three hours of material.)

Today’s news will be well received by artists – but it won’t be quite so welcomed by third-party aggregators, major record companies or, indeed, by SoundCloud. (And then, perhaps – we shall see – starting to charge for this and other tools down the line.) You have to question how long Spotify’s free-for-all will last: in that same July earnings call, the firm’s CFO Barry McCarthy predicted that building a successful “two-sided marketplace” would help improve Spotify’s gross margins – which, inevitably, would mean using it to make more money.įor now, however, Spotify seems happy to absorb the costs of running a user-upload service, in order to quickly build a global community of engaged musicians. This cost-free approach sits in stark contrast to existing third-party digital aggregators/distributors such as CD Baby, TuneCore, Distrokid and Ditto – all of which require either a one-off upload fee or a yearly subscription payment from artists. “we’re really building a two-sided marketplace that provides tools and services for labels and artists… Our goal is to get as much music onto the Spotify platform as we possibly can.” The platform isn’t charging any upfront fees for uploads – no matter how many tracks are submitted – and also isn’t charging artists any additional commission on the royalties generated by this music. The biggest shock news today, however, is that Spotify’s upload feature is completely free. (Ek, whose service already ingests 20,000 new tracks a day, added that “our goal is to get as much music onto the Spotify platform as we possibly can”.) In July, the firm’s CEO, Daniel Ek, reiterated to investors during a Q2 earnings call that he ultimately wants to create a “two-sided marketplace” serving both consumers and musicians. This move has long been anticipated from Spotify.

Upload to spotify free