Summary
- Spotify’s push for video has led to sexually explicit content infiltrating the podcast section.
- NSFW content dodges Spotify’s moderation systems, reaps views, but was removed when reported.
- Erotic audio content also violated terms, but remains undetected due to listener ratings and other tricks.
Podcasting is growing in a big way for what used to be music streaming apps on Android. YouTube Music was vocal about its push in the podcasting segment, but Spotify has been at it for longer. You would imagine that with age comes experience, but unfortunately, Spotify’s push for including video has given rise to a plague of sexually explicit content that’s now showing up nestled between top shows, making it a chart-topping problem for the platform.
Pornographic content has always been a problem on video-sharing platforms like YouTube, but Bloomberg’s Ashley Carman highlighted the growing menace this has become on Spotify, through the Soundbite newsletter. The platform now allows users to upload video, and you might see oddly-titled shows sit between popular Podcasts like Marketplace and Prof G Markets right on the Top Business Podcasts page. Top charts for other podcast categories on the app are in a similar state.
Content on these charts is typically ranked by popularity, quantified by the number of unique listeners per day, so this explicit content is raking in views. However, they have successfully dodged Spotify’s content moderation systems, and made it harder for genuine podcasts to succeed.
Spotify has an NSFW content problem too
Content is going unchecked
While porn obviously flouts Spotify’s ban on “sexually explicit material,” the reason for it showing up in the first place remains a mystery. Scope for monetization can be ruled out safely since shows on the app need to have a minimum number of episodes with each reaching specific consumption thresholds. In an email to Bloomberg, a Spotify representative confirmed that these shows weren’t monetized through the Spotify Partner Program, or through adverts.
Additionally, the platform took prompt action, removing all the shows flagged in the report, citing the obvious platform rules. Moreover, this also highlights the growing number of shows and episodes featuring erotic audio, which also violates the platform’s terms, but remains largely undetected because creators encourage listeners to rate the content poorly so it stays out of the limelight. The Spotify representative confirmed such shows were also removed following the initial report. However, the collective problems in the platform’s automated content detection and flagging algorithms remain unchecked, and it will rear its ugly head again, if left unchecked.
