STOCKHOLM: Music and video streaming giants Spotify and Netflix have penned a deal to bring several video podcasts produced by Spotify to Netflix&#39;s platform, the companies announced late Tuesday.&nbsp;Under the deal, 16 video versions of podcasts produced by Spotify Studios and the Ringer, which was acquired by Spotify in 2020, will be available on Netflix, starting in early 2026 in the United States, with other markets to follow.&nbsp;&quot;This partnership marks a new chapter for podcasting,&quot; Roman Wasenmuller, VP and Head of Podcasts at Spotify, said in a statement.&nbsp;Spotify also said that it was planning &quot;to bring similar opportunities&quot; to a wider range of podcasters in the future.&nbsp;&quot;I see this as a clear step in Spotify&#39;s strategy to accelerate its video podcast bet, which has become an increasingly important focus,&quot; Christoffer Jennel, an analyst at equity research firm Inderes, told AFP.&nbsp;Spotify first began offering non-music audio and video content on its service in 2015.&nbsp;It has since accelerated its investment in podcasts and in 2019 it acquired prominent podcast producer Gimlet Media.&nbsp;In a statement, Spotify noted that while podcasting &quot;began as an audio-first medium,&quot; it &quot;is now a vibrant multi-format landscape.&quot;&nbsp;Jennel added that &quot;the agreement can be seen as another step in Spotify&#39;s ambition to establish itself as a broader media platform beyond audio&quot;.

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Spotify and Netflix signed a deal to stream 16 video versions of podcasts on Netflix from 2026, marking Spotify’s push to expand beyond audio and strengthen its position in video podcasting.

Spotify, Netflix sign deal to stream video podcasts

LONDON: Spotify said Tuesday that founder Daniel Ek is stepping down as CEO to become the executive chairman, in an announcement that sent its shares sliding in premarket trading. The Stockholm-based streaming giant said Ek will be replaced by two lieutenants who will become co-CEOs: Chief Product and Technology Officer Gustav S&ouml;derstr&ouml;m and Chief Business Officer Alex Norstr&ouml;m. The pair, who are also currently copresidents, will transition into their new jobs on January 1 and will report to Ek.&nbsp;Spotify said in a press release that the move &ldquo;formalizes&quot; how Spotify has been operating since 2023, with S&ouml;derstr&ouml;m and Norstr&ouml;m largely leading strategic development and operational execution.&nbsp;Ek said that he had already &ldquo;turned over a large part of the day-to-day management and strategic direction&rdquo; to the pair.&nbsp;&ldquo;This change simply matches titles to how we already operate,&rdquo; he said. As executive chairman, Ek said he will focus on Spotify&#39;s &ldquo;long arc.&rdquo;&nbsp;In an online question and answer session following the announcement, Ek said his new role would not be a ceremonial one that investors with a &ldquo;US perspective&rdquo; might expect.&nbsp;In Europe, an executive chairman is typically &ldquo;quite active in the business,&quot; and acts as a representative to &ldquo;certain stakeholders&rdquo; such as governments, he said.&nbsp;Ek said he still sees growth opportunities, including a &ldquo;huge part of the world that&rsquo;s really not accustomed to streaming&rdquo; stretching from Asia to Africa, as well as new technology, including artificial intelligence.&nbsp;&ldquo;I&rsquo;m gonna keep pushing for us to look around the corner, stay focused on the long term,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;Since Ek founded Spotify about two decades ago, the platform&#39;s rise has helped transformed the music business and paved the way for modern streaming. Spotify now has more than 700 million subscribers and a library of more than 100 million songs, 7 million podcast titles and 350,000 audiobooks.&nbsp;Spotify shares, which have doubled in the past year, fell more than 3% in premarket trading after the announcement.

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Spotify founder Daniel Ek is stepping down as CEO to become executive chairman, with Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström named co-CEOs. The move formalizes leadership since 2023, sending Spotify shares down over 3% premarket.

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Spotify, Netflix sign deal to stream video podcasts

Spotify founder steps down from CEO role

Spotify, Netflix sign deal to stream video podcasts