Spotify teases more acquisitions for new categories like audiobooks

Spotify's interest in acquisitions appears to be going strong as CEO Daniel Ek shared a major push into audiobooks and new unnamed categories at the company's Investor Day on Wednesday.

Why it matters: Ek said he judges Spotify's success on users' lifetime value and that these investments in new categories will further grow that and ensure long-term profitability.

What he's saying: "There's one dominate player in audiobooks, and that's similar to what the podcast space looked [like] in 2018," Ek told Axios' Sara Fischer. "We think that by entering the market, there's a great chance to win but also expand that market, and if that takes more acquisitions, we're flexible to do that."

Context: Spotify has invested more than $1 billion to help it compete in podcasting. It acquired studios like Gimlet and tech like Anchor and signed exclusive licensing deals with top podcasters like Joe Rogan and Alex Cooper.

• To expand into audiobooks, Spotify acquired Findaway last year.
• "What our successes in music and podcasting has clearly demonstrated is that we've built a powerful machine and solid infrastructure that enables us to go after new verticals, and we're not waiting around," Ek said at Wednesday's event.

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