Spotify Launches The "Now Experience"

Daniel Ek

Spotify is ramping up its service to compete with Apple by moving beyond music. The new streaming service will now offer live radio, podcasts and video as well as music that plays in beat with your running stride.

Spotify's new streaming channel will feature video and audio content from media partners such as Vice News, Comedy Central and Nerdist. The new platform includes "Songza-like" personalized playlists that will line up music, news and entertainment to match the user's daily routine in both video and audio format.

The announcement was made by Spotify CEO Daniel Ek at a press event in New York City on May 20. Ek described the move as a "massive leap forward" as he outlined the new Spotify, which essentially aims to provide you with all your daily audio and video needs.

"We're bringing you a deeper, richer, more immersive Spotify experience," said Ek, "We want Spotify to help soundtrack your life by offering an even wider world of entertainment with an awesome mix of the best music, podcasts and video delivered to you throughout your day. And we're just getting started."

The new Spotify, which the Swedish company has dubbed the "Now experience," will feature intelligent personalized playlists. It will learn from what you do at various times of the day and what you're listening to and remember it so it can replicate your playlist for your various activities.

TechTimes reports Ek also unveiled an impressive list of media partners, including major news organizations (NBC, BBC and ESPN), popular podcasts (TWiT, RadioLab) and online media sites. The full list of partners announced in the presentation is: ABC, Adult Swim, BBC, Comedy Central, E!, ESPN, Fusion, Maker Studios, MTV, NBC, RadioLab, Slate, TED, TWiT, Vice News and WNYC.

The Spotify revamp comes just as Apple is expected to enter the streaming music market in June following its $3 billion acquisition of Beats Music last year. It's unclear exactly what Apple's service will look like, but there's every chance that it could include video just like iTunes.