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Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

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Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#111

Podcasts may literally be the last major content category on the internet that is still open/inter-operable/syndicated. (remember when we thought RSS and Atom were really going to go far?). Maybe not for long.

It was open until people realized that they could make significant money off of it. Then the walls started going up.

Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#112
post #76

Do Spotify actually manage to sell any significant number of subscriptions due to podcasts? Personally when ever I hear about an interesting podcast, and it's followed by "available on Spotify/Podimo, whatever", my reaction is always: Okay, never mind then. There are so many great podcasts on the open web. Those available on platforms like Spotify always seems to be people with existing celebrity status trying to "ca…

No, but they could lose subscribers due to Podcasts. See, I pay for Spotify because of their playlists. Playlists have nothing to do with podcasts. I listen to my podcasts using a different app. Yet Spotify keeps throwing its podcasts in my face. Spotify is not good at podcasts. That's why I use a different app for that. I'm getting tired of scrolling past all the podcast spam in my Spotify UI, and yet Spotify provid…

I recently gave Spotify a try for about 8 months but just switched back to Apple Music. My reason for switching back had nothing to do with podcasts, it was simply Spotify's terrible interface that makes it impossible to just browse all the music in your library. But I had also started to notice podcasts infiltrating UI that used to be only music playlists. A few times I even mistakenly clicked on a podcast thinking that it was a music playlist that sounded interesting.

Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#113

Do Spotify actually manage to sell any significant number of subscriptions due to podcasts? Personally when ever I hear about an interesting podcast, and it's followed by "available on Spotify/Podimo, whatever", my reaction is always: Okay, never mind then. There are so many great podcasts on the open web. Those available on platforms like Spotify always seems to be people with existing celebrity status trying to "ca…

Spotify is targeting the millions of customers that already use their app who aren't regular podcast listeners. These people will now get exposed to the podcast ecosystem through Spotify and that'll help boost subscriber retention.

As someone who uses Spotify for music, and another podcast app for podcasts, I find it annoying to scroll past podcasts to get to music. I'm skeptical that someone who has no interest in podcasts will decide that instead of putting on music they want to listen to a podcast - at least in most situations.

Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#114

Joe who? Seriously, I think that there are a number of reasons why this won't pan out as predicted: - There aren't really any tent-pole, must listen podcasts. They thought Joe Rogan was one but I'm hearing a lot of people have stopped listening to him on Spotify (I have). - Spotify (and others) don't have the money to buy out the whole podcast ecosystem and many podcast makers I think would resist going Spotify exclu…

Rogan is fine (if dumb) light entertainment to have in the background. I haven’t listened to a single episode since the move now that it’s not on YouTube anymore. Spotify is also totally awful for podcasts as the UX is for a music player. Besides Lex now fills that hole with a lot more intelligence

Eh, Rogan normalizes hate speech in ways that if you or I were to try to do would get us fired/unfriended.

I don't think that's "fine", but it's also not really topical to the submission so I'll leave it at that.

Edit: if folks want to start a discussion about this with me, let's create an email thread about it. My email is in my profile, I'll wait until three folks mention their interest before getting started, if that works. I really didn't mean to upset or try to dodge anything, I just don't think a protracted discussion about Joe Rogan will be very interesting to most people on HN.

Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll admit I'm a podcast novice, but what player are you using and what does it offer beyond Spotify? I find, download, and play podcasts through Spotify without issues, and the few features I need (speed adjustment, offline access, and show notes/links) are all available on Spotify. If there is a better way to listen, I'd love to hear about it.

I use PocketCasts (on iOS) and I'm happy enough to pay for a subscription (extra benefits are marginal though). It's less about features, I think, and more about the overall experience. It's probably quite personal too, but in no particular order: - Smoother and more responsive UI - Less cluttered and more dense UI eg visual overview of all my subscriptions - Silence trimming - Sharing from a given place in a podcast…

Another user of PocketCasts (Android and Windows).

In addition to the above, I make use of

- podcast specific auto download, retention, and playback settings

- clean Android Auto integration. When I switch from Pandora to PocketCasts, it's quite clear what is happening. It intelligently handles pausing/resuming playback while notifications are playing. Even rewinding a little if it's been a bit since you listened.

- Progress sync, so I can pickup where I was on different versions of the app. (Desktop/Web/Android)

- Fast refresh of feeds. Your phone asks their server for the status rather than calling each server individually. This was a bigger issue back in the day.

Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#117

Do Spotify actually manage to sell any significant number of subscriptions due to podcasts? Personally when ever I hear about an interesting podcast, and it's followed by "available on Spotify/Podimo, whatever", my reaction is always: Okay, never mind then. There are so many great podcasts on the open web. Those available on platforms like Spotify always seems to be people with existing celebrity status trying to "ca…

Wait till they start to control a significant part of public discourse. They will receive money to recommend some podcast, and bury others. The young Facebook was a great place to advertise your business. Now you have to pay for it.

Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I use Pocket Casts. I just like it a lot, and I don't want to switch because it does everything I need. Spotify seems like it wouldn't be as configurable, but I haven't even felt the need to check. Plus, I don't like a monoculture.

I would love to support Pocket Casts, but I don't want to pay another subscription (Pocket Casts plus appears to be $1/mo). Do you know if there's any way to just pay $12 for Plus forever or something like that? Or another podcast app that has that kind of one-time purchase?

Is there a feature you want out of the paid subscription, or do you just want to support them? The subscription goes towards enabling features which have an ongoing cost (sync of files and listening state across devices so you can listen on desktop where you left off on mobile). I don't think they want to offer a one time fee for what is an indefinite period of cost.

AFAIK most features other than that are still fully supported in the free version of the app without ads though. So if you don't want any of those features, they're probably better supported by you recommending them to others than giving them a few dollars.

Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#119
post #99
post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I stopped listening to Rogan when he fell off my preferred PodCast app, and I am a Paying Spotify Premium user but I do not use Spotify for PodCasts because I like to keep my PodCasts and Music Separate

The strangest thing about Spotify for me is that I pay for Premium as well but that doesn't save me from Joe Rogan's own commercials he inserts into his spotify podcasts. They're skippable by simply moving the seek bar to the end but why if I'm paying for Premium are they even there? They're not baked into the podcast itself but rather the player pauses the playback of the podcast and cues up multiple 120(!) second a…

I have Spotify Premium and hear no ads on JRE.

Re: Spotify is killing the open podcast ecosystem (2020)

#120
post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, but they could lose subscribers due to Podcasts. See, I pay for Spotify because of their playlists. Playlists have nothing to do with podcasts. I listen to my podcasts using a different app. Yet Spotify keeps throwing its podcasts in my face. Spotify is not good at podcasts. That's why I use a different app for that. I'm getting tired of scrolling past all the podcast spam in my Spotify UI, and yet Spotify provid…

I recently gave Spotify a try for about 8 months but just switched back to Apple Music. My reason for switching back had nothing to do with podcasts, it was simply Spotify's terrible interface that makes it impossible to just browse all the music in your library . But I had also started to notice podcasts infiltrating UI that used to be only music playlists. A few times I even mistakenly clicked on a podcast thinking…

It's even worse if you want to hear your mp3 collection. Terrible interface.
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