The Networked Fan Effect: Understanding Spotify’s Promotional Ecosystem through Participatory Media & Fan Theory

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The Networked Fan Effect: Understanding Spotify’s Promotional Ecosystem through Participatory Media & Fan Theory

Olivia Ingle

Biography

Olivia Ingle was born in Waterloo, Ontario & raised on the internet. Graduating with a major in Professional Communications and minoring in Communication Design, their studies have centred around the intersection of digital technology and popular culture. With previous work experience in marketing & design roles for the aerospace and radio industries, Olivia hopes to pursue further creative content and operations work in the music, film, or museum business.

Research Summary

The Networked Fan Effect is a research project focused on identifying the use of participatory media and fan theory strategies by Spotify in the development of their platform ecosystem. Content posted on Spotify’s Newsroom website from November 2022 – March 23 was categorized by topic and inductively coded for key themes of fandom and participatory media strategy identified through a theoretical framework, including transmedia, convergence, fan engagement, and fan affect. With 41% of all news items and 70% of product development news relating to these key themes, there is a clear trend towards building a product ecosystem that emphasizes the creation of highly shareable media content. Alongside additional research into Spotify’s tertiary product initiatives including Wrapped, Fans First, and For Artists, this project concludes that Spotify not only building itself as a streaming powerhouse, but as a multi-functional media ecosystem with lasting power in the broader media and popular culture industries.

Tags

Music, Culture, Media

Lightning Talk

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