Spotify has announced the rollout of its new ‘Messages’ feature, allowing users to share their favorite music, podcasts, audiobooks, and more with others. Messages are a fast and convenient way to share and chat about what you’re listening to with the people you care about, says the company.
With the latest update, you can start a message in-app with people you’ve interacted with through Spotify. Similar to Instagram, messages will be delivered to the recipient, who has the authority to accept or deny the message request.
Users also get a quick share button in the ‘Now Playing’ view, which they can tap to select a friend and hit send instantly. Additionally, Spotify suggests people to message based on factors such as whether you’ve shared Spotify content with them before, joined Jams, Blends, or collaborative playlists together, or if you share a Family or Duo plan.
Similar to other instant messaging apps, Spotify also offers the ability to react to a message with emojis. The company claims to have implemented industry-standard encryption during message transit and storage and will use proactive detection technology to scan messages for certain unlawful and harmful content.
Availability
Messages will start rolling out to Free and Premium users, aged 16 years and older, starting this week, in select markets on mobile devices.
Regarding the benefits of the Messages feature, Spotify said:
Messages also open up new opportunities for artists, authors, and creators—more users can spread the word about an artist’s track or creator’s podcast with their friends and family, helping drive discovery.