Hands-on with Spotify’s new Video and Audio Shows [Video]

Spotify recently added new Video and Audio Shows, and this week the update has been rolling out to Android users. It’s an interesting move for a streaming service that has long been dedicated to being the best at music (and it’s still the leader in this space by far), but I think this update will come as a delightful value-add for those that have shifted to using Spotify as their main avenue of media consumption…

The first thing that changes when the update rolls out on your device is that “Your Music” in the hamburger menu appropriately becomes “Your Library”. From there you have a new option called “Shows,” where you can browse many different kinds of content across both Video and Audio categories. At first glance, the “Video Shows” just look like rehosted content you could find on YouTube, but ad-free. And that’s pretty much what they are. Ellen’s YouTube clips are here, tons of short clips from other prime time shows are here, and “Epic Rap Battles of History” videos are here, too.

The “Audio Shows” side of things is different, though. While the library may not be anywhere as extensive as that of iTunes, Spotify is really tackling Podcasts head on and offering some of the best names in the biz. You’ll find the Nerdist podcast, BBC Global News, Around the NFL, and more. What’s more, these shows can actually be added to your library and saved for offline listening, while the video content can’t. As is proper, Spotify has added some nice new controls for this new content, letting you skip ahead or back by 15 seconds at the tap of a button.

As I mentioned earlier this week, this move is interesting but not exactly a surprising in a world where all services want to give us everything. Podcasts, once specific to the iTunes Store, are now playing in Spotify and in Google Play Music as well. It seems like every messaging app out there wants to have all the features of every other messaging app. All the main social networks become more alike every day. And now, we can watch YouTube videos on Spotify.

The new Video and Audio Shows features should be rolling out to an Android device near you this week, and a report earlier this week from The Wall Street Journal said that iOS users will begin seeing the new content next week.