• by Colin Kirkland , March 25, 2024

Spotify is expanding its focus beyond music streaming, podcasts and audiobooks to include educational resources for in-app learning.

The video offerings -- produced in partnership with brands like the BBC -- aim to bridge the gap between YouTube and Master Class while attracting a new wave of Spotify creators.

The e-learning feature is currently rolling out in the United Kingdom.

Spotify users in the U.K. will begin to see a library of video-based lessons from e-learning platforms like BBC Maestro, Skillshare, Thinkific and PlayVirtuoso on mobile and desktop. The courses will fall into four categories, including “make music,” “get creative,” “learn business,” and “healthy living.”

Course subjects range from artist-led music production to 3D animation to learning how to create and sell similar educational courses online -- a nod to a new kind of creator ecosystem that Spotify may want to grow.

Free and premium Spotify subscribers will gain access to at least two video lessons per course for free and then have the option to pay a fee to access the rest of the course. The cost of a total course ranges from £20 to £80 on average.

According to Mohit Jitani, Spotify's London-based product director for the education offerings, the company's podcast efforts are the main inspiration for e-learning courses, with about half of its 226 million Premium subscribers engaging in education or self-help themed podcasts.

“More and more people were starting to come to Spotify with some intent of learning,” Jitani told The Verge. “And we thought, how can we take this core insight and build something on top of it?”

In addition, Jitani told TechCrunch that Spotify is using this U.K. rollout as a means of understanding the demand for this type of content. “Then we optimize how we can make it more compelling and exciting,” he added.

To compete in the e-learning space, Spotify is telling course providers that its algorithm, which contains significant data on the listening habits of a massive user pool, will help their content reach a directly targeted customer base.

Users in the UK can access the courses on mobile via a new icon on the top of the home screen, as well as the search and browse options.