What Is Spotify?

Spotify is a music streaming digital service that lets you have an expansive music and podcast library at your fingertips. It’s been beyond a decade since the launch of Spotify in 2008, and the platform’s popularity continues to soar. 

Multitudes have changed since then, but one thing is sure Spotify has a lead even over Tidal and Apple Music. 

You can take your pick from millions of songs spanning a diverse range of genres, legally and for free. Not only this, if you like subtle romance stories or crime thrillers, you can tune into podcasts as well. 

Spotify has its headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, with offices in 17 countries across the globe. It has more than 356 million active users, and predictions state that this figure will only rise. 

So, what exactly is this platform, and what can it offer? As you dive deeper into this article, you will find the answers to such questions and more. Prepare yourself for a full-fledged guide on what Spotify is! 

The Roots Of Spotify 

Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon founded Spotify in 2006, based out of Stockholm. Ek is the former CTO of Stardoll, one of the world’s largest virtual fashion communities. Lorentzon is the co-founder of Tradedoubler, a Swedish digital marketing company launched in 1999. 

Initially, the name of the company sprouted from a misheard word, something that Lorentzon has yelled. However, the duo came up with the name as a portmanteau of the words “spot” and “identify.” 

With its launch in February 2009, registrations were initially free in the United Kingdom. The mobile service followed soon after this, resulting in a surge in registrations that prompted a halt in free enrollment. In July 2011, the platform reached the US shores. 

In March 2012, Spotify opened unlimited streaming services to all for absolutely free, supported by ads. 

Spotify gained immense popularity during its 2016 marketing campaign, which mocked people’s listening habits. It took off on social media, and listeners could connect better with the platform, enhancing Spotify’s user base. 

How Does The Swedish Streaming Service Work?

All you need to use Spotify is a stable internet connection and a Spotify account. It is effortless to create an account, requiring only an email address and basic personal information. Setting up an account is entirely free, but you can choose to become a Premium user. 

Once you’ve signed up, Spotify will give you the option to be a Premium user for a trial period of three months. The Premium version requires you to pay a nominal subscription, but it comes with several perks the free tier does not. 

You can install the Spotify App on iOS as well as Android. It comes in the form of a desktop program too. If you aren’t a fan of applications, you can use Spotify through the Spotify Web Player. 

With these, you can begin listening on any device as long as you sign in to your account. Spotify tracks your listening records and offers suggestions while also syncing the history and playlists across devices.

Spotify Premium 

Spotify is completely free to use, but advertisements support the free tier. If you wish to listen to an uninterrupted flow of music, Spotify Premium helps. With a Premium subscription, you will not have to listen to or view any ads. Spotify Radio is also not available in the free version. 

The quality of the audio will also be better, going from 160 kbit/s to 320 kbit/s. Additionally, you will be able to download music to listen to offline. Free Spotify, on mobile apps, restricts skipping to 6 skips per hour and shuffles playlists on its own. The Premium version eliminates these issues too. 

Spotify Premium is a monthly subscription of $9.99 in the United States, €9.99 in Europe, and £9.99 in the United Kingdom. You can even enjoy a student discount that can go up to 50%.

Exploring Music And Discovering Playlists On Spotify

Your home page is the key to finding the best music and podcasts for yourself in the vast library of Spotify. From there, you can browse popular playlists, top hits, and several other things. Spotify also suggests mood playlists, trending songs and podcasts, and more. 

The greater the amount of your listening hours, the more customized and personal the Spotify experience becomes. You can enjoy multiple recommendations based on your preferred music. Daily Mix playlists will also frequent your home page, coming from your listening history. You can create your playlists as well.

Countries With Spotify 

There are only a handful of streaming services that enjoy as widespread a userbase as Spotify. It is available in most countries, except a few like Russia and South Korea. However, in the last few months of 2021, the service may expand to 178 countries. 

Here, you can study a comprehensive list of countries where Spotify operates.

The Features Of Spotify

Whether you use the unpaid version or the paid version, Spotify comes with a range of exciting features.

Connect With Friends And Others

You can connect with friends and others on Spotify while seeing what they’ve been listening to. It is an excellent way to find new people with similar music tastes and bonding with friends. Besides this, you can connect via Facebook too. 

Spotify Connect

You can play music through various devices, from Amazon Echo to Google Home and Wi-Fi speakers. 

Spotify Pets

Spotify learned that many people play music specifically for their pets. For this, the platform has focused on pet music playlists. These include music playlists with music for dogs, cats, hamsters, iguanas, and more! 

Codes

Spotify Codes is a feature that allows you to share music quickly and easily with friends and family. You can generate a unique code for a song, playlist, or profile; anyone who scans it using the app will be able to listen to it. 

Time Capsule

Time Capsule is another fascinating feature of Spotify. It generates a playlist with songs you would’ve listened to while growing up based on your listening habits. 

Endnotes

Spotify constantly releases updates to remain efficient and in stride with the trends. You can go on tailored musical journeys and listen to your favorite podcasts. Listening to music on Spotify can be a social as well as a highly personal act. Make sure you read all the terms and policies before opting for Spotify!