Spotify shuts down its Clubhouse competitor

Spotify is shuttering its live audio app Spotify Live, as first reported by Music Ally (via TechCrunch). In a statement to The Verge, company spokesperson Gayle Gaviola Moreau confirmed that Spotify is going to “sunset the Spotify Live app,” as it believes “it no longer makes sense as a standalone app.”

Spotify instead indicates that it will continue to offer live audio in limited ways on the main Spotify app, such as listening parties, a feature that lets top fans connect with artists in a virtual space.

The Verge reached out to Spotify for more information on whether Spotify Live features will still exist in the main audio app, but the company declined to elaborate. “While the Spotify Live app is shutting down completely, we will continue to invest in, innovate, and experiment on new formats for creators and listeners around the world,” Gaviola Moreau says.

The music streaming service first launched the audio-only app in 2021 under the name Greenroom. The company built the app in response to all the hype surrounding the social audio app Clubhouse and even acquired the live audio service Betty Labs for €57 million (around $67.7 million at the time) to help it do so.

“We believe there is a future for live fan-creator interactions in the Spotify ecosystem; however, based on our learnings, it no longer makes sense as a standalone app,” Gaviola Moreau says. “We have seen promising results in the artist-focused use case of ‘listening parties,’ which we will continue to explore moving forward to facilitate live interactions between artists and fans.”

Correction April 3rd, 7:35PM ET: A previous version of the article misinterpreted Spotify’s mention of “listening parties” as a way for users to listen to music together in a remote party. However, Spotify’s listening parties feature is actually a way for top fans to listen to an artist’s music in a virtual space. We regret the error.