As Spotify cuts back on podcast creation, opportunities arise for competitors in Latin America

In an early 2024 editorial for media and marketing publication Campaign, we declared, “It is time for the podcast industry to think global and act local”. Geared towards helping advertisers better optimise their content for international success, the larger context of this declaration was the continued growth of podcasts outside of the US and UK — especially in “emerging” markets like Latin America. 

MIDiA’s 2024-2030 podcast forecasts confirm that the growth podcasting has already seen in Latin America will only continue, making Spotify’s slowdown in global podcast investment particularly troublesome for markets like Latin America, where Spotify effectively became the local podcast industry. Though less a divestment from Latin America and more a pivot in its global strategy with regional ramifications, it has still opened up a potential opportunity for competitors to capitalise on.  

Latin America has long been home to many of the streaming capitals of the world — e.g., Mexico City, Bogotá, São Paulo — which is why music’s second Latin explosion has been all but inevitable. In 2019, Spotify started investing heavily in Latin American podcasting, commissioning hundreds of shows made by local podcasters in markets across the region. A majority of listeners in Latin America started accessing their podcasts on Spotify as a result, and the platform became the backbone of the industry there. 

Converting Latin American music streaming hotspots to podcast listening hotspots was less about marketing to new Spotify users and more about converting existing music streamers to podcast listeners. That required making podcast content that would appeal to local audiences. While the strategy seemed to work, 2023 rightsizing — or the execution of a premeditated strategy — saw Spotify divesting from original content creation and major celebrity deals on a global scale, and that meant letting go of the reins in local markets.

Spotify may have calculated  that they have already converted enough music streamers into podcast listeners loyal enough to secure their long-term commitment to the platform. . As a result, leaving markets to their own devices would not ultimately hurt their bottom line (and might even help it). After all, Spotify’s top priority is keeping users subscribed worldwide, and growing local industries is really a means to that end. The risk for Spotify now is competitors filling the vacuum.

YouTube is the top platform for podcast listening in the world, and from 2024 to 2030, market share and user penetration for the platform will increase. Along with Asia, Latin America is a big reason for this global growth, as YouTube is the number one  platform for audio consumption in these regions, despite it not being an official audio platform. Were Google to start investing in local podcast creators in key Latin American markets, the company could quickly cement itself as the global leader in podcasting, and not just unofficially with YouTube, but officially with YouTube Music as well.

In Q2 2024, 43% of listeners in Brazil were accessing their podcasts on Spotify, while 62% of listeners in Brazil were accessing their podcasts on YouTube. 7% were accessing via Apple Podcasts and 17% via Amazon Music. While Spotify still holds a commanding second place, opening the door for other podcast platforms to gain ground in Latin America is a risky move with local and global implications for its podcasting dominance. That said, with Casa Spotify Buenos Aires, its recent cultural centre for Argentine creators, it appears the company is still committed to keeping at least some foothold in the region.