(Bloomberg Businessweek) -- Spotify’s mixes are replacing radio as the most powerful promotional tool in music. Monetizing them is also the company’s best shot at reversing its operating losses.Landing at the top of Spotify’s most popular playlists all but guarantees a song will become a hitToday’s Top Hits 19.4m followers
A selection of the most listened-to songs on the streaming service, curated by Spotify reps. This is the new Top 40.RapCaviar 9.1m followers
The hottest in rap, aka the most popular genre in the U.S., according to Nielsen. You know you’re a breakout when you’ve made your first appearance here.¡Viva Latino!7.6m followers
Latin music’s rising mainstream visibility has a lot to do with this playlist. Despacito wouldn’t have been the song of last summer without it.Now that Spotify has millions of people hooked, it’s time to start making money① Video
After trial runs on RapCaviar and Viva Latino, Spotify is interspersing documentary footage and music videos in some playlists.
The upshot: YouTube is still the juggernaut, but with $10 billion in ad revenue up for grabs, Spotify is going after it.② Pay for play
“Sponsored songs” appear on certain playlists, but only in Spotify’s unpaid tier.
The upshot: Advertising accounted for just 10 percent of Spotify’s sales in 2017, but globally there’s $28 billion in radio ads there for the taking, according to Magna Global.③ Concerts
A four-city RapCaviar tour is booked for this spring, and Spotify is also hiring someone to produce Viva Latino events.
The upshot: The concerts are only marketing vehicles for now, but the goal is to grab some of the $8 billion North American live-music business.
https://open.spotify.com/user/3uix1aingq7hlmcowe7jmn1s9/playlist/6f7BMsgYRKMfcrWHAn1pX9#_=_
To contact the author of this story: Lucas Shaw in Los Angeles at lshaw31@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jillian Goodman at jgoodman74@bloomberg.net.
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