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The podcasting initiative was doomed to fail as soon as Apple started allowing individual podcasts to monetize directly. That prevented them from rolling up the

The podcasting initiative was doomed to fail as soon as Apple started allowing individual podcasts to monetize directly. That prevented them from rolling up the long tail of the podcast universe as a Spotify exclusive by just paying for the biggest shows. It was a good strategy by Apple. Then you combine the change in the macro environment, and that was the final nail in the coffin. https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2021/06/apple-podcasts-subscriptions-and-channels-are-now-available-worldwide/ https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2021/06/apple-podcasts-subscr...

hospitalJail 3y ago
>The podcasting initiative was doomed to fail as soon as Apple started allowing individual podcasts to monetize directly. Eh, as someone who never listened to the big guys or use Apple's podcasts, I'd hardly give Apple credit. It was just impossible to put podcasts behind a paywall after they were free for a decade. It truly seems like a stupid thing. Reminds me of how one of the satellite radio companies would buy a popular radio host, and that popular radio host would lose their popularity in exchange for millions.
- Despegar 3y ago
  It could have worked, but only if Apple remained asleep. Paying for big shows like Joe Rogan has given Spotify a large market share in podcasts. Obviously they weren't going to offer upfronts to every single podcast. Their strategy was to bring users in with the biggest shows, and have the rest of the podcasts feel like they have no choice but to move to Spotify to monetize (via their ad-tech).
Dudester230602 3y ago
Apple has streaming now?
CharlesW 3y ago
> The podcasting initiative was doomed to fail… Except that it didn't. Before Spotify, "podcasting" meant "open medium based on web standards". Spotify embraced/extended/extinguished it to the point that even technical people happily call shows distributed on closed platforms like Spotify and YouTube "podcasts". Since freeing the word "podcasting" from its open, standards-based chains, Spotify now claims to be the largest podcast listening platform with 25% of U.S. listeners. As a closed platform, there's no way to independently verify whether Spotify is cooking their metrics books.
- Despegar 3y ago
  This is an academic argument for a purist. The fact is that Apple checkmated them by allowing monetization of podcasts directly. Without being effectively countered, Spotify wouldn't just be 25% of the market, they'd be the YouTube of podcasting.
  - xnx 3y ago
    Will be interesting to see if YouTube turns into the YouTube of podcasting.
  - CharlesW 3y ago
    > This is an academic argument for a purist. Yes, this is Spotify's argument to anyone who says it's bad that they liberated "podcasting" from web standards. > The fact is that Apple checkmated them by allowing monetization of podcasts directly. That's not how it works — as with Spotify, listeners pay Apple, and then Apple gives podcasters a percentage of the proceeds. https://podcasters.apple.com/support/892-apple-podcasters-program-overview https://podcasters.apple.com/support/892-apple-podcasters-pr...
WesleyLivesay 3y ago
I feel like you are overestmating the impact of Apple Podcast subscriptions. It doesn't seem like a very well supported feature outside of a few large media brands.

hospitalJail 3y ago

>The podcasting initiative was doomed to fail as soon as Apple started allowing individual podcasts to monetize directly. Eh, as someone who never listened to the big guys or use Apple's podcasts, I'd hardly give Apple credit. It was just impossible to put podcasts behind a paywall after they were free for a decade. It truly seems like a stupid thing. Reminds me of how one of the satellite radio companies would buy a popular radio host, and that popular radio host would lose their popularity in exchange for millions.

Despegar 3y ago
It could have worked, but only if Apple remained asleep. Paying for big shows like Joe Rogan has given Spotify a large market share in podcasts. Obviously they weren't going to offer upfronts to every single podcast. Their strategy was to bring users in with the biggest shows, and have the rest of the podcasts feel like they have no choice but to move to Spotify to monetize (via their ad-tech).

Dudester230602 3y ago

Apple has streaming now?

CharlesW 3y ago

> The podcasting initiative was doomed to fail… Except that it didn't. Before Spotify, "podcasting" meant "open medium based on web standards". Spotify embraced/extended/extinguished it to the point that even technical people happily call shows distributed on closed platforms like Spotify and YouTube "podcasts". Since freeing the word "podcasting" from its open, standards-based chains, Spotify now claims to be the largest podcast listening platform with 25% of U.S. listeners. As a closed platform, there's no way to independently verify whether Spotify is cooking their metrics books.

Despegar 3y ago
This is an academic argument for a purist. The fact is that Apple checkmated them by allowing monetization of podcasts directly. Without being effectively countered, Spotify wouldn't just be 25% of the market, they'd be the YouTube of podcasting.
- xnx 3y ago
  Will be interesting to see if YouTube turns into the YouTube of podcasting.
- CharlesW 3y ago
  > This is an academic argument for a purist. Yes, this is Spotify's argument to anyone who says it's bad that they liberated "podcasting" from web standards. > The fact is that Apple checkmated them by allowing monetization of podcasts directly. That's not how it works — as with Spotify, listeners pay Apple, and then Apple gives podcasters a percentage of the proceeds. https://podcasters.apple.com/support/892-apple-podcasters-program-overview https://podcasters.apple.com/support/892-apple-podcasters-pr...

WesleyLivesay 3y ago

I feel like you are overestmating the impact of Apple Podcast subscriptions. It doesn't seem like a very well supported feature outside of a few large media brands.