Spotify Explores Live Festival Video Rights, Launches Fan Ticketing Program

Spotify's move into live video and ticketing directly addresses its ongoing challenge to expand beyond audio streaming and bolster advertising revenue. By integrating live music experiences directly into its platform, Spotify competes more directly with platforms like YouTube, which has successfully streamed festivals for over a decade. The success of "Reserved" and its live video content will provide a key indicator of Spotify's ability to convert user engagement into sustained revenue growth and attract new Premium subscribers, particularly as the company focuses on becoming a broader media platform rather than solely a music streamer.

Spotify's push into live music experiences emphasizes its broader strategy to enhance user engagement and diversify revenue, as detailed by The Next Web (June 2026). The "Reserved" feature, launched in May 2026, leverages user streaming data to identify and reward dedicated fans with early ticket access, outmaneuvering competitors like Apple and Amazon for the Live Nation deal (Live Nation Newsroom, May 2026). This approach mirrors American Express's strategy of offering presale access to retain cardholders. While initially considering a "super premium" tier for such perks, Spotify opted to integrate "Reserved" into its standard Premium subscription at no additional cost (Spotify Support, May 2026). This strategic shift aims to make the free-to-paid upgrade more appealing and justify existing Premium pricing. The company's expansion into video, including securing premium music video rights and video rights for podcasts, is driven by a financial motive: video advertising often commands higher rates than audio, and increased video consumption creates more ad inventory. However, parts of the music industry view Spotify's diversification efforts as a potential way to reduce artists' share of the platform's revenue pool (Hypebot, June 2026).