Spotify, the music streaming service, has finally let you rate podcasts. This is a great addition because it will make it easier for people to find and rate good podcasts. It also makes it easier for people to find new and interesting podcasts to listen to.
“Podcast ratings give listeners an opportunity to support their favorite podcast shows and enable a two-way feedback loop between creator and listener,” said Spotify in a blog post.
When you listen to at least 30 seconds of a podcast, you’ll have the option to give a rating between one and five stars. The average rating and the number of ratings a podcast has will be shown on its page when the show reaches at least ten ratings. It’ll give users another way to decide if a podcast is something they want to listen to.
For creators, Spotify says, “Ratings also give creators a big-picture view of how they’re doing, which they can then use productively by asking for more specific feedback.”
Spotify encourages podcast hosts to ask for ratings in a blog post, so you can probably expect to hear your favorite shows asking for ratings on the app side-by-side with their requests for ratings and reviews on Apple’s podcast platform.
The rating system will roll out over the coming days “in nearly all markets where podcasts are on Spotify.” It’ll be interesting to see if this takes off, as ratings can often be manipulated, either by users negatively review-bombing a show or the creator getting their friends and loved ones to shower them with positive ratings.
