Apple would be developing exclusive content for the Podcasts app and could buy some original productions. In addition, he would look for an executive to lead the new initiatives in the field of podcasts.
Content to promote Apple TV + or on which to base new series
A few months ago Bloomberg already suggested that Apple was developing original content for the Podcasts app-based and focused on promoting Apple TV + series. Now, the publication reports that the Cupertino company is planning to buy new content.
The content that Apple is looking for will mainly focus on spinoffs (works derived from a character or aspect of the main work) of the existing series on Apple TV +, although also, following the reverse path, it will look for original content that can be adapted to series for the streaming service. At the same time, Apple is seeking to hire an executive to lead new initiatives in the field of podcasts, a position that will report to Ben Cave, head of the podcast section at the company.
Spotify, Apple Music’s main competitor, has been spending a lot of time and money buying podcasts for the past year. The Swedish company’s goal is to unseat Apple in this field in which the Podcasts app, available on the iPhone, iPad and Mac, has become the benchmark for users of Apple platforms.
Differentiation, on the road to subscription fatigue
Podcasts were initially conceived as a way to listen to our favorite radio shows at times convenient to us. Instead of having to listen to the radio at a certain time or set up a recording system, we can find the content on-demand on a web page. In fact, the same word “podcasts” is formed by the union between “pod” -capsule- and “cast” -an abbreviation for broadcast- in reference to the media that broadcast continuously over time.
As podcasts began to gain traction, something that was roughly parallel to the decline in live broadcasts, it began to move from broadcast and recording to recording-only. What was the point of broadcasting a program, for example, on the radio when you could record it, edit it if necessary, and post it directly on the web?
With this approach, content began to be created that, like music or movies, can become a differentiating element of the platforms that offer it. Currently, at least in terms of music, all platforms offer approximately the same content. We, as users, can choose between one service or another depending on others, we will go different from the content, such as the quality of the apps, for example.
The situation changes radically when we talk about audiovisual content, Netflix has its own content, Disney + theirs, Apple TV + too, Amazon Prime the same, etc. If, as users, we want to see several of the series “of the moment” or our tastes are scattered between platforms, we have to pay several subscriptions.
With the path that Spotify started a little over a year ago, with which podcasts are typical of a single platform, it seems that we will return to the audiovisual case rather than the musical one. That we will have to pay several subscriptions to access the content, instead of choosing the one that we like and that offers a broader repertoire. We will see how podcasts, acquisitions and the advancement of different platforms evolve.