Spotify is buying Chartable and Podsights, two podcasting-focused analytics companies, for an undisclosed amount of money. Spotify said it would use the Podinsights technology in its broader advertising-oriented network in a news release. 

For those not familiar, these companies work with podcasters and networks to include unique tags that give them insights into podcast listening behavior. Podsights help advertisers understand the effectiveness of their advertising, while Chartable provides valuable insights into the listeners and their behavior. 

Both these acquisitions add up to a smart move by Spotify. The company is trying hard to become the most significant player in the “hearing” attention economy and build a sizeable advertising business. Podcasts are a vital part of this business as they cost less and allow the company to keep a significant chunk of its revenues. In comparison, it has to share the money with record labels, who continue to have a draconian hold over the company.

The record labels get about 70 cents on a dollar from Spotify. In a way, Spotify is smartly using music as lead generation. It takes the user’s attention because the listener wants to stream music and channels it towards other audio forms. It is podcasts today and AI-generated sounds and audiobooks in the future. The longer people stay glued to Spotify’s stream, the more opportunity it has to sell some advertising against the stream. After all, advertising-monetized attention doesn’t discriminate between Joe Rogan, Michelle Obama, Neil Young, or machine-generated lo-fi sounds.

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