Snapchat is introducing a feature that lets users display the music they are currently playing on Spotify to selected friends through Snap Map. Called Now Playing, the opt-in integration also allows users to discover and save songs shared by friends or featured in Spotlight videos.
The feature is rolling out in regions where both Snapchat and Spotify are available, with support in Canada expected later. Snap says more than 450 million people use Snap Map each month.
Users Control Who Sees Their Music
Users can connect their Spotify account and choose which Snapchat friends can view their current track. The song appears alongside their profile on Snap Map while sharing is active.
Now Playing does not display a user’s listening history or previously played song. Sharing automatically pauses when the user has not opened Snapchat for more than 24 hours and resumes after they return to the app.
Users can also pause the feature manually for three hours, 24 hours or indefinitely. Snap said the controls are intended to prevent listening activity from remaining visible when someone is no longer actively using Snapchat.
Spotlight Videos Connect Directly to Spotify
Snapchat has also integrated Spotify with Spotlight, its short-form video feed. When users hear a song in a Spotlight video, they can open its Spotify page or save it directly to their music library.
The feature gives artists and creators another route for turning short-form video exposure into streams and saved tracks. TikTok and Instagram already offer similar tools for sharing music and transferring songs to streaming services.
Spotify has also introduced its own social features for sharing listening activity with friends. The Snap Map integration extends that activity into a location-based interface where users already view friends, places and nearby events.
Snap Map Expands Beyond Location Sharing
Snap launched Snap Map in 2017 as a way for users to share their location with friends and browse public posts from different places. It has since added local recommendations, popular locations, activities and other discovery features.
“Music is one of the most personal ways people express themselves, and it becomes even more meaningful when it brings friends closer,” Snapchat Head of Music Manny Adler said in the company’s official announcement.
Adler said Now Playing adds another form of expression to Snap Map while helping users discover music through people they already know.
Featured image credits: PICRYL
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