The podcasting app Pocket Casts is carving a brand new narrative for the way forward for podcasts in a means that’s virtually arduous to imagine. As of Tuesday (March 1) Pocket Casts has eradicated its fundamental subscription tier for its internet and desktop apps, which means which you could hearken to all the finest podcasts utterly freed from cost, marking a fairly vital transfer in direction of making podcasts extra accessible and, most significantly, extra inexpensive.
Pocket Casts’ choice to revert to an open entry platform displays its long-standing ideas of sustaining an open podcasting ecosystem that’s not overruled by paywalled companies, all whereas eradicating algorithm-controlled discovery options. “By making our Net Participant accessible to everybody, we’re reinforcing our perception that podcasts belong to the individuals, not firms”, it acknowledged in its announcement.
It is a fairly reassuring assertion to learn, and one which I hope will spark additional dialog about the place we draw the road with regards to paying for audio content material like podcasts. And it’s arduous for me to imagine that Pocket Casts is pulling our legs right here, because it guarantees to supply options that each podcast fanatic must be entitled to, together with multi-device playback syncing, seamless podcast queue administration, and subscription financial savings and preferences – all simply by signing up without spending a dime.
Even earlier than it was acquired by Automatiic in 2021, Pocket Casts has existed as an open podcasting service (on its cellular model, at the least), working on open expertise and permitting customers to create, share, and obtain podcasts to their coronary heart’s content material. However since podcasts have migrated to paywalled platforms corresponding to Spotify and YouTube, we have seen some culling of accessible podcasting. That is at the least one purpose why Pocket Casts has made this uncommon transfer.
Pocket Casts has no disgrace in shading Spotify
“The way forward for podcasting shouldn’t be locked behind walled gardens. It must be free, open, and accessible to everybody – on any machine, with out restrictions”. Pocket Casts shared this assertion of their announcement, and I can scent the resentment for Spotify from a mile away.
It’s fairly clear that Pocket Casts isn’t all too pleased with the best way that different audio platforms have taken benefit of the profitability of podcasts, particularly with regards to restricted podcasts inside these apps that require an extra charge on prime of your Spotify Premium or YouTube Premium month-to-month cost. Over the previous yr, there’s been a noticeable shift in the best way that these different audio streaming companies have been switching up their podcast methods. It’s not a shock that Pocket Casts is making such daring choices.
Final summer time, Apple opened the gates of its personal walled backyard making it simpler for non-Apple customers to stream Apple Podcasts from an online browser, and Spotify has been meticulous with the enterprise facet of its podcasts by launching ad-free video podcasts in January. It’ll take rather a lot for Pocket Casts to construct up a reputation standing that may match its opponents, however this uncommon transfer is not going to solely open extra doorways for podcast entry, however it could flip the heads of loyal subscribers of Spotify and different main audio platforms.
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