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Spotify has opened its Partner Program for video podcasters to 37 more countries, giving creators in Latin America, southern Europe and elsewhere their first chance to earn money from video on the platform. The expansion took effect on 20 October, taking the programme from 19 markets to 56.
The new markets include Brazil, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Poland and most of Latin America and the Caribbean. Spotify announced the expansion on 17 September, saying it would bring the programme to more than 35 new markets in the autumn. Its support pages confirm the opening date as 20 October, and coverage of the company's event in Madrid gave Spain the same date.
To qualify, a show needs at least three published episodes, plus 2,000 consumption hours and an audience of 1,000 in the last 30 days. Creators who meet the bar earn a share of Premium video revenue, along with 50 percent of the revenue from ads that Spotify sells into their episodes. Spotify says total monthly payouts to creators have been rising, although it has not published a figure for the new markets. Creators who join can earn half of the advertising revenue their shows generate, and the programme now covers 56 markets after starting in 19, giving podcasters in far more countries a way to earn from their work.
The expansion matters because video podcasts have become one of the fastest-growing formats on Spotify, and creators in the new markets could previously build an audience without earning anything from it. Opening payments gives them a reason to invest in better video, and it helps Spotify compete with YouTube, where video creators have long been able to earn from ads.
YouTube is also changing its own rules, with new applicants to its Partner Program needing 8,000 watch hours in a year or 20 million Shorts views in 90 days from February 2027. Spotify's lower bar may tempt some creators to publish video on both platforms, or to favour the one that pays them sooner.
Source: Evolved Lotus
