The leading music-streaming service Spotify has launched a new player inside Facebook’s mobile apps on iOS and Android that supports full playback of songs, podcasts and other audio.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS:
- Spotify’s new mini-player launches in the mobile Facebook app.
- This lets you play any shared Spotify audio right from the News Feed.
- Free Spotify users will of course hear ads.
- It’s available in Facebook’s app for iOS and Android.
- You must consent to “very limited” data sharing.
Spotify has a new mini-player on Facebook
According to an announcement this morning on the Spotify website, listeners can now enjoy Spotify music and podcasts as they scroll around their News Feed on Facebook. The new mini-player from Spotify is now available in the mobile Facebook app on iOS and Android in 27 markets, including the US. This integration will launch in additional countries at a later time.
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The Verge notes that the new mini-player will automatically appear on select verified artists’ posts, in addition to any shared videos that feature background music.
Users will also see the mini-player on shared videos that have music in the background. A play button will surface after the video finishes where people can play the song. Facebook listeners will hear the shared track, and once it ends, Spotify will continue to play music on shuffle, as it usually does.
The new mini-player in the mobile Facebook apps is available to both Spotify Premium and free users. Needles to say, free users will hear ads when playing Spotify audio on Facebook.
The ads will come directly from Spotify, but Facebook will receive ‘limited data’ about users trying the integration, including subscription type and metrics to assess the mini-player’s performance. It won’t use this information to target ads, Spotify says, and listeners will have to consent to the data sharing when they first start the player.
Facebook and Spotify already have a partnership that permits users to automatically share their Spotify activity, including any songs they listen to, via Facebook’s News Feed. This new feature extends that years-long partnership further.
How to use Spotify’s mini-player on Facebook
To use Spotify’s new mini-player on Facebook, you simply hit the Play button that appears in the News Feed on any Spotify audio content shared from Spotify to Facebook.
- Open the mobile Facebook app on your iPhone.
- Scroll through the News Feed until you find a post with embedded Spotify audio.
- Tap the “Play” button that appears on a song or podcast in the News Feed.
Playback will automatically start from within the Spotify app.
Spotify keeps playing even if you keep scrolling down your News Feed, which is great. And even as you scroll down the News Feed, you still have access to the Spotify playback options so you can pause or dismiss the mini-player at any time.
You must be logged in to Spotify for this integration to work. If you’re not logged in, you will be prompted to do so upon hitting the Play button.
Image credit: Spotify