What’s New? Spotify has rolled out a brand-new feature called Messages, allowing users to send direct messages without leaving the app. The feature is available for both Free and Premium subscribers, ages 16 and up, in select markets at launch.
How Does It Work?
- Tap the Share button on the “Now Playing” screen, choose a contact, and send your message.
- You can message people you’ve already interacted with — via shared playlists, Jams, Blends, or Family/Duo plans.
- All conversations live in a dedicated Messages inbox, accessible from your profile (top left corner of the app).
- Messages support text replies and emoji reactions. You can accept or reject requests, block users, or disable Messages entirely.
- Security: messages are encrypted “at rest and in transit” with industry-standard protocols — but there’s no mention of end-to-end encryption.
- Spotify actively scans messages for illegal or harmful content and provides reporting tools (newsroom.spotify.com, techcrunch.com).
Why Is Spotify Doing This?
- The company says users wanted a centralized, in-app space to share what they love — whether music, podcasts, or audiobooks — without jumping between apps (newsroom.spotify.com, techcrunch.com, cincodias.elpais.com).
- For creators, Messages could act as a viral distribution tool, boosting streams via word-of-mouth sharing (newsroom.spotify.com).
- Strategically, it positions Spotify not just as a streaming platform, but as a social audio hub, competing with Apple Music, Amazon Music, and YouTube (reuters.com, techcrunch.com).
The Backlash
Not everyone is excited. Early reactions are mixed — some users see Messages as unnecessary “bloat”:
- Tom’s Guide calls it feature bloat, since Spotify users can already share via other apps like WhatsApp or Messenger (tomsguide.com).
- TechRadar highlights user frustration with a messy rollout, especially as Messages and the new Mix tool appear inconsistently across accounts (techradar.com).
- New York Post quotes annoyed users asking: “Who even wanted this? I don’t want Spotify for chatting — just for music” (nypost.com).
- Others argue Spotify should prioritize long-promised Hi-Fi (lossless audio) instead of rolling out a messenger (tomsguide.com, thesun.co.uk).
What do you think about Spotify Messages? Is it the future of social streaming or just another unnecessary feature? Share your thoughts in the comments below — we’d love to hear your take!
Want more on Spotify’s latest features? Check out our deep dive here: Spotify Updates: What’s New in Streaming
