Premium Subscription- now with Ads

[ONENINESEVENSIX]

Plan

Premium

Country

USA

Device

iPhone 11 Pro

Operating System

iOS 

My Question or Issue
what’s up with the increasing amount of ads as bumpers for podcasts? I’m not talking about the presenter read out Ads which is one thing unto itself - I’m talking about pre-recorded actual ads that I’ve noticed ( especially today ) are playing Pre show. 

Every non Spotify podcast I tapped today played some targeted ad for Dunkin Doughnuts for San Diego. Which means that it used my demographic info to target me, while running as a professional pre-recorded ad in the pre roll. This sucks. I pay for premium I don’t want ANY ads let alone the growing number of ads slipping in under the radar that are basically making the premium service a joke. Premium service with zero ads should mean just that. Why are the t and c’s being changed either for your customers or the podcast creators and one or the other are not being informed in a transparent manner? 
don’t call it “premium” If it’s riddled with ads. I’ve been a premium subscriber since 2015. 

[Billy-J]

Hey @ONENINESEVENSIX, thanks for reaching out to the Community!

Let's take a look 🔍 

Does this only happen when you're listening to podcasts? If so, can you share some links of a few podcasts this happens on - and I'll see if this happens on my end as well. You're able to copy and paste the link here following these steps. 

Keep in mind that while Spotify doesn’t play ads that interrupt the music listening experience of Premium subscribers (like yourself), some podcast creators may include third-party advertising, host-read endorsements or sponsorship messages in their episodes.

Let me know how all of this goes!

[ONENINESEVENSIX]

Like I said this wasn’t a host read ad nor was it “amateur”. It even started “Hey San Diego!...” and was for Dunkin’. This isn’t the first time it’s happened either. Today I just am over this s**t however. It played before Dungeons & Randomness, before Astonishing Legends, before Crime Junkies ( go figure!) and before another podcast I listen to. That’s 4 times in one day. 4 separate podcasts at 4 unique times. I trouble shot the app prior to posting: logging out everywhere, deleting the app, then reinstalling it.

The drip, drip, drip of semi professional or professional ads ( now targeted ones ) is a brand killer. Especially when it speaks volumes - no pun intended - about paid subscription services still allowing brands to target demographics irrespective of Premium/Free.
The ads played pre-roll. Not mid show. Not read out on air. Basically the same stuff you hear on a radio.

[Billy-J]

Hey @ONENINESEVENSIX, 

Thanks for your feedback. I can confirm that this is the expected behavior for podcasts. I'd recommend checking out the official Spotify announcement regarding this kind of advertising in podcasts on Spotify here for more info.

I hope this clears things up. Have a nice day!

[ONENINESEVENSIX]

here’s one that has ads preroll that we’re specifically addressing residents of San Diego about Dunkin’ Doughnuts: https://open.spotify.com/show/15po4iSnhu1issMNr6UY39?si=0ECAL4GVS7yWueej1UCEUA

Crime Junkie being another one. And don’t get me started on their ongoing plagiarism of other podcasts and repeated lack of fact checking for a “true crime” podcast is, frankly, embarrassing. 
https://open.spotify.com/show/3DgfoleqaW61T2amZQKINx?si=2228SZ4eQJ6i_EZbpZcgFw

[Alex]

Hey there @ONENINESEVENSIX

Thanks for reaching out about this and expressing your opinion on the matter.

It looks like other users feel the same way about ads in podcasts. You can go ahead and add your +Vote to this Idea. The more votes an idea gets, the more likely it is to be implemented in the future. We always take new ideas and feedback into consideration to improve the app. Here you can read more on how ideas work.

Don't hesitate to reach out again if you have more questions.