Social media platforms are pressing on with social audio as they compete for creators

The news: Major social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook are still rolling out social audio features as part of social media’s push into the creator economy, even as perceived interest in the medium is fading, per Social Media Today.

• On October 11, both platforms made separate live audio announcements:
• Facebook has made live audio rooms available to “public figures and creators” globally, and it added a dedicated hub for social audio under its “Watch” tab.
• Twitter announced a broader rollout of its “Spaces” tab, which will help users more easily discover audio rooms in progress.

Why it’s happening: As interest in social audio has dropped off, its future might be as a supplementary feature rather than a discrete platform.

• Social audio platforms that were framed as competitors to Clubhouse have either slid out of the discourse or been scooped up: In March, Spotify acquired Betty Labs, owner of sports live audio platform Locker Room.

Furthermore: Many of the most prominent social audio features launched by major social media companies are centered around creators.

• Twitter has enabled creators to monetize live audio with Ticketed Spaces, and Spotify has launched several live audio tools, including social audio app Greenroom.

Don’t forget: Clubhouse is still in the mix—and it's pressing forward.

• In August, the company announced that it averages 700,000 “rooms” per day.
• But that number pales in comparison to the 55.6 million Twitter users or 179.5 million Facebook users who now have access to social audio within the apps they already use.

Why it’s worth watching: Many of the social media platforms launching live audio features have a larger built-in audience than the platforms that ignited the trend.

• As social audio becomes less about building a platform and more about supplementing existing strategies, the progenitors of the medium may get absorbed by larger competitors.