Spotify’s Video Podcast Push Sparks Porn Problem 2025
For Android applications that used to broadcast music, podcasting is rapidly expanding. Although Spotify has been in the podcasting space for a longer time, YouTube Music was outspoken about its efforts.
You would think that experience comes with age, but sadly, Spotify’s effort to include video has resulted to a pandemic of sexually explicit content that is now appearing between popular programs, making it an issue at the top of the charts.
Using the Soundbite newsletter, Bloomberg’s Ashley Carman brought attention to Spotify’s increasing threat of pornographic content, which has long been an issue on video-sharing websites like YouTube.
Users may now contribute videos to the platform, and on the Top Business Podcasts tab, you may notice strangely named shows sandwiched between well-known podcasts like Marketplace and Prof G Markets. Similar trends may be seen in the top ranks for other podcast categories on the app.
This explicit material is receiving a lot of views since the content on these charts is usually sorted by popularity, which is measured by the number of unique listeners each day.
They have, however, managed to evade Spotify’s content control procedures, which has hindered the development of legitimate podcasts. Although it is clear that porn violates Spotify’s policy on “sexually explicit material,” it is unclear why it was included in the first place.
Since programs on the app must have a certain number of episodes with each episode hitting certain consumption requirements, the possibility of monetization may be safely ruled out.
A Spotify official confirmed in an email to Bloomberg that neither advertisements nor the Spotify Partner Program were used to monetize these concerts.
Citing the clear platform guidelines, the platform also acted quickly, eliminating every program that had been highlighted in the report.
Additionally, this draws attention to the increasing quantity of programs and episodes that contain pornographic audio, which is against the platform’s rules as well but goes mostly unnoticed since producers urge viewers to give the material a low rating in order to keep it out of the spotlight.
After the first report, the Spotify official verified that similar programs were also taken down. Nevertheless, if the platform’s automated content detection and flagging algorithms’ collective issues are not addressed, they will reappear ugly.
MF Hussain
Hello! I’m MF Hussain, the creator of Spotifyinfo.net, a site that helps Spotify users enjoy their music more. With Spotify Premium, I can access a huge library of songs, create my own playlists, and listen without ads. I share my experiences to help others improve their Spotify journey.
