Spotify faces Apple via its paid podcast
The battle for podcast dominance is still ongoing, and Apple may not be the only tech giant to have paid podcast subscriptions in the near future.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Spotify is preparing to unveil its in-app paid podcast system sometime next week.
The news comes right after Apple's podcast service launched its own in-app subscriptions, and Apple is allowing podcast users to sell access to ad-free content at any price they choose.
And unlike Spotify's plan, Apple requires content makers to pay $ 19.99 a year in order to list subscriptions, in addition to a 30 percent fee for each subscriber's first year.
Apple also does not allow podcast makers to use RSS to distribute exclusive content, and it must be downloaded manually through its system.
Spotify has not confirmed the plans, but the director of content and advertising works (Dawn Ostroff) said: There is room for everyone in the audio space.
Unlike Apple, Spotify will not charge a fee or percentage from each membership, and the report added that podcast owners who choose to sell in-app subscriptions can set prices.
Listeners who use the Spotify app for iOS are directed to a website to complete the transaction and purchase subscriptions, depriving Apple of its usual share of App Store transactions.
Patreon, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, and Wondery all offer prepaid podcast services.
And Apple and Spotify could quickly corner the market with massive leverage, provided there is enough interest in paying for podcast content in the first place.
And while the timing is probably not intended, Spotify's plans show just how fiercely it is to compete with Apple in the podcasts.
Both see this as an opportunity to expand their services and master the spirit of the cultural age through exclusive offers.
The podcast has gone viral during the lockdown caused by the coronavirus, and it is on track to generate more than $ 1 billion in revenue this year from ads in the United States for the first time.
An estimated 116 million Americans, or 41 percent of the US population over the age of 12, now listen to podcasts monthly, an increase of 11 percent from 2020.