According to reports, Spotify is now offering labels the opportunity to "pay for plays" with sponsored content. Usually, you will see banner ads display across the streaming platform that includes Spotify's ads along with other services. Now, labels are able to pay to have sponsored songs pop up on playlists that you frequent or follow. According to TechCrunch, the songs can be targeted to show up to users with similar musical tastes to the track and will be saveable and playable instantly without having to sit through an advertisement. A Spotify spokesperson gave more information on the new addition, saying the sponsored content is "a product test for labels to promote singles on the free tier."
According to Spotify, the sponsored songs advertisements could show up in an official manner, but the ads would only appear via users who are on the free tier. Basically, if you don't have a premium account then you will see more of these "sponsored songs."
Source: techcrunch.com
