Spotify introduces comments on podcasts

Users can now leave comments under podcasts on Spotify, which the streaming platform has said would help creators build a stronger relationship with their listeners.

Spotify said it would begin rolling out the “long requested” feature on Tuesday (July 9th). Both podcasters and listeners had called on the platform to add the functionality.

“Podcasts have historically been a one-sided format, and while we’ve offered other interactivity features like Polls and Q&A for some time, people have told us they want more ways to connect directly,” Spotify said.

The platform introduced Q&A and polls in 2021 to make podcasting more interactive and said it adding comments was expanding on that decision’s success.

According to Spotify, more than nine million unique listeners interacted through its Q&A and polls this year alone, while year-over-year growth of total responses and votes from listeners reached 80%

“Now, for the first time, listeners can actually have a two-way conversation with their favorite podcast hosts on Spotify, podcasters can get near-immediate feedback from their audiences, and real communities can form around shows,” Spotify said in a blog post.

The company said that listeners who interact with a show are four times more likely to return to that show within 30 days and listen to twice as many hours per month on average as those who don’t.