AFAIK royalties are paid out for every stream over 30 seconds long. The 'context' (album, playlist, single play) doesn't matter. "royalties [are] based on an artist’s share of overall streams across the platform" [1]
My guess is that playlists lead to more engagement than albums. Users listen longer, and discover new music, which leads to more listening in the future.
My guess is that playlists lead to more engagement than albums. Users listen longer, and discover new music, which leads to more listening in the future.
[1] https://loudandclear.byspotify.com/?question=per-stream-rate