Focus: Few platforms are as willing as Spotify to experiment with new features and services outside its main scope of interest. Sometimes the gambles pay off; other times, we’re left wishing the company would just get back to the basics and focus on what got them to the dance.

Spotify’s latest venture involves video-based learning courses. The streaming audio giant has partnered with Skillshare, BBC Maestro, PLAYvirtuoso, and Thinkific on the project, which is launching as a pilot in the UK first.

Locals will be able to find video courses split into four primary categories: get creative, make music, learn business, and healthy living.

Babar Zafar, VP of product development at Spotify, said the pilot allows them to explore an exciting opportunity to better serve the needs of users that are interested in learning. “Many of our users engage with podcasts and audiobooks on a daily basis for their learning needs, and we believe this highly engaged community will be interested in accessing and purchasing quality content from video course creators,” Zafar added.

Eligible free and premium subscribers will be able to try at least two lessons per course for free. Should they want to keep going, additional lessons can be purchased directly from Spotify. No word yet on what pricing looks like, but it will likely vary depending on the content.

In announcing the new trial, Spotify said nearly half of its Premium subscribers have already engaged in self-help or education-themed podcasts. It is unclear if Spotify plans to expand the feature to additional regions, a decision that will likely depend on the success it finds in the UK.

The initiative is the latest in a string of new features – some of which can be hard to get excited about. There are only so many ways to repackage recommendations and playlists or redo listener collaborations before it all starts to feel a bit gimmicky. Why not focus on what got you to the top in the first place: music. It’s nearly the end of the first quarter of 2024 and we’re still waiting for Spotify to launch HiFi, a premium service promising CD-quality music that was originally supposed to arrive in 2021?

Image credit: Stefan