Spotify is hoping it can lend a hand in getting concert tickets to an artist’s biggest fans, as the streaming service revealed “Reserved” on Thursday during its investor day, a new feature that as it sounds, sets aside tickets for premium subscribers so they have a better shot at buying them.
“Getting concert tickets today can feel like a race you’re set up to lose,” Spotify wrote in a post on Thursday. “You show up at the right time, refresh endlessly, and still miss out. Too often, the experience is stressful, unpredictable, and disconnected from what should matter most: whether real fans actually get tickets. We think there’s a better way.”
Spotify said that starting in the U.S. this summer, select artists will be able to use Reserved to set aside tickets for fans on the platform. The platform has partnered with Live Nation on the program as part of a multiyear agreement. The platform will use streams, shares and other types of activity to “identify an artist’s most dedicated fans and hold two tour tickets for them.”
Fans selected through Reserved will get up to two tickets, and they’ll have a day-long window to make a ticket purchase if selected. Spotify didn’t give any details on what artists will work with the streaming service for the new feature, or how many tickets artists would set aside with Reserved, though the service acknowledged “there will be significantly more superfans than there are seats available on a tour, so not every fan will receive an offer.”
How much Spotify’s new feature will get tickets in the hands of fans remains to be seen, though it’ll likely at least be met with excitement from fans, who as Spotify said, have grown increasingly frustrated with the ticket-buying process as they spend hours in online queues for the most in-demand acts as they attempt to snag seats for a show.
“Reserved” is perhaps the most notable of a suite of new features Spotify revealed during its investor day, mostly tailored toward superfans.
Spotify also said it would release a new standalone desktop app called Studio by Spotify Labs, which allows users to create personalized podcasts, playlists and more, curated based on personal tastes.
Earlier Thursday, Spotify and UMG revealed a new licensing agreement that will allow subscribers to make AI covers and remixes of select participating artists from UMG’s roster.
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