Spotify Discovery Mode FAQs

Discovery Mode is a Spotify marketing/audience growth program that helps your music get heard when audiences are most open to discovery. There are no upfront costs. Discovery Mode gives artists and labels the opportunity to influence the radio & autoplay algorithm by submitting tracks they want to highlight more often. When Discovery Mode is turned on for a given track, it significantly increases the likelihood - but does not guarantee - that the song reaches additional listeners.

How do I opt into Spotify Discovery Mode?
If you opted out of Spotify Discovery Mode, you can also opt back in via the SymphonicMS platform in two ways:

• Spotify Discovery Mode Analytics: You will have an option to enroll in the program on the Spotify Discovery Mode analytics page by clicking the Enroll button.
• Spotify Discovery Mode Enrollment: Navigate to Spotify Discovery Mode Enrollment under the accounts menu and select Opt in.

What are the eligibility requirements for Discovery Mode?
Spotify requires the following:

1. The track must be 30+ days old at the time of opt-in
2. The track must have at least one radio or autoplay stream in the last seven days

To use Discovery Mode through Symphonic, the track must also be distributed by Symphonic. Meeting these requirements does not necessarily mean a track will be enrolled in Discovery Mode, nor does it guarantee any performance levels if a track is enrolled in Discovery Mode.

How much does Discovery Mode cost?
Discovery Mode has no upfront costs; however, in exchange for inclusion in the program, Spotify charges enrolled tracks a marketing fee equal to 30% of the per-stream-payout for the radio & autoplay streams only. You will not be charged this fee for non-radio & autoplay streams, including those from playlist placements or streams from subscribed listeners. Additionally, Symphonic does not charge you to enroll in Discovery Mode. We’re in this together, and we only succeed when you succeed as an artist.

Will I see results for my Discovery Mode enrolled tracks in Spotify for Artists?
No, you will not see any analytics or separate reporting for Discovery Mode in Spotify for Artists. However, Symphonic has developed our own advanced Discovery Mode Analytics, which you will see under the Analytics tab in the SymphonicMS if you have tracks opted into the program.

Can I choose the tracks enrolled in Discovery Mode?
No, Symphonic uses proprietary technology to streamline your catalog management by selecting tracks to enroll based on what is expected to perform well in the program. Additionally, Symphonic has built proprietary business processes with Spotify to limit earnings impact on your songs by automatically removing tracks in Discovery Mode that are not performing well. We maximize the impact of the program while removing the management overhead for you. Neither Symphonic nor Spotify guarantees the performance of any tracks that are enrolled in Discovery Mode, but we have put a lot of time and energy into testing and optimizing the program to help our clients get discovered by more new fans.

Can I opt out of Discovery Mode?
You can but given the results we’ve seen, it may be best to stay in the program and let our proprietary business rules with Spotify select what stays in or is removed from the program to maximize your exposure to new audiences and earnings. Additionally, you will not be able to select individual tracks to remove. The entire contents of your account will be removed from the program if you opt-out. Should you really want to remove your account from Discovery Mode, you can navigate to Spotify Discovery Mode Enrollment under your account menu on SymphonicMS.

On the Spotify Discovery Mode Enrollment page, you will be given the option to opt-out. Enrollment changes cannot be made mid-campaign so, if you opt out of of the program, that will take effect next eligible campaign.

What are these negative values in my earnings report?
These are the Spotify marketing fees associated with your tracks enrolled in Discovery Mode (the 30% lower Spotify payout on radio & autoplay streams that we mentioned above.).

How do Spotify Discovery Mode analytics streams relate to my Spotify streams reported in Streams analytics?
The streams reported in the Spotify Discovery Mode analytics feature are always a subset of the Spotify streams reported in the Streams feature. The radio streams and active streams do not represent additional streams but rather a categorization of the total Spotify streams to better evaluate the impact of the program.

What is a "lift" metric?
The lift metrics help evaluate the change in performance once a track has been enrolled in a program. To evaluate change, the lift metrics calculate the difference between the daily average of the last 28 days of enrollment and the daily average of the 28 days before the most recent Spotify Discovery Mode campaign. If a track has a Radio Streams Lift metric of +100, that can be interpreted as that, on average, that track has an additional 100 radio and autoplay streams per day before it was enrolled.

Are the lift metrics a percentage or a number change?
The metrics in the feature are the change in the average number of streams, new listeners, or collection saves per day. To see the percentage change for the lift metrics, hover over the trend arrows.

What is a baseline average, and how is it calculated?
The baseline average represents the daily average of the metrics before a track started a campaign. If a track’s campaign range is May 2023 - current, the baseline is based on the average of the metrics from 2023-04-03 - 2023-04-30.

What is a radio stream?
A radio stream is a radio or autoplay stream on Spotify. The Spotify Discovery Mode program prioritizes enrolled tracks for these types of streams in order to help gain exposure. This metric helps evaluate how effective the program is at increasing these types of streams for enrolled tracks.

What is a new listener?
A new listener is an individual who has heard a track for the first time via a radio and autoplay stream. This helps measure how effective the program is in gaining exposure to a new audience for your music.

What is a collection save?
A collection save is either a playlist add or a save to a collection (e.g., clicking the heart icon for a track). These are the total playlist adds and collection saves in the time period, and not just the ones that occurred during radio and autoplay streams. This metric helps evaluate if you are gaining long-term fans through the program.

What is an active stream?
An active stream is a stream that occurred when a listener intentionally sought out the track by searching for it, playing it from their own collection, or playing it from an album/artist page. These streams have the full rate and help evaluate if you are gaining long-term fans through the program.