Swedish audio platform Spotify acquires podcast discovery platform Podz

Spotify plans to integrate Podz’s technology into its platform, and that some of the results should be visible before the end of the year

Washington [US] –

Swedish audio streaming platform Spotify recently announced that it has acquired Podz, a startup whose technology generates preview clips of podcasts.

 According to The Verge, this acquisition is aimed at improving podcast discovery and letting users browse short clips rather than 30-minute plus podcast episodes.

 Spotify has said this will make it “easier for listeners to find the content they want to listen to, and for creators to be discovered and build a fan base.” Podz told TechCrunch that users on its platform typically follow up to 30 podcasts, up from an average of seven.

 The acquisition of Podz comes after Spotify’s subscription podcasting announcement, in which it would allow select partners to charge for access to their content.

 Although Spotify isn’t planning on taking its 5 per cent cut of subscription revenue until 2023, eventually it’ll have a direct financial incentive to encourage its listeners to find and subscribe to as many podcasts as possible. Especially since it’s now competing with Apple Podcasts’ own in-app subscriptions, which launched this week.

 As per The Verge, Spotify plans to integrate Podz’s technology into its platform, and that some of the results should be visible before the end of the year.