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We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

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Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#201

Post by b3b0p »

I feel, at least for me, the golden age of podcasts is over already.

There was the early [0] Retronauts the new Patreon/Kickstarter version is only same in name.

Then there was the [1] 1up Yours. All the hosts, co-hosts, and popular regular guests have moved on.

Then there was the epic [2] A Life Well Wasted by Robert Ashley. This is absolutely superb.

The only podcasts of similar I listen to now are Giant Bombcast and 8-4 Play. I miss the good old days.

I've tried to branch out to other topics and areas, but podcasts are my way of escaping and thinking and listening to something else outside work and study.

I have actually started to go back through these and re-listen to them. They are timeless. I have a friend who does the same.

[0] https://archive.org/details/Retronauts1-100

[1] https://www.resetera.com/threads/1up-podcast-preservation.90...

[2] http://alifewellwasted.com/

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#202

Post by sincerely »

slg wrote: post #197
dangoor wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> That is great for the content creators themselves, but it hurts discoverability and just isn't great for the podcast listener. I subscribe to a couple of shows which offer free versions, discoverable through Apple's directory and others, and paid "upgrades". Those paid upgrades come into the same app I use for listening to podcasts generally. I actually think things today are pretty well set up for podcasters who w…

I subscribe to a few as well. The some episodes free and some paid model is the better for discoverability than everything behind a paywall, but it can still be off-putting to new listeners. Although my primary problem with that model is that it isn't sustainable for heavy listeners. Each show can cost anywhere from $2-$10 per month. That adds up quickly. I end up spending more on podcasts a month than I do on Netfli…

Well, maybe this should be a wake up call that the models of services like Spotify aren't really sustainable for the content producers on them.

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#203

Post by rhinoceraptor »

schnevets wrote: post #58

Creators may be entering a golden age, but the delivery methods and infrastructure have been stagnant for years now. We now have ongoing shows, evergreen episodic shows, "two amateurs in a basement" niche shows, 12-episode and it's done audiobooks, and various other designations of podcasts, and yet we still serve everything like it's a blog that needs to release content weekly. I also find it frustrating that we onl…

IMO we should celebrate that podcasts have managed to remain an open standard for so long. All of the open standards we have, are basically a historical accident: HTTP, SMTP, etc.

It's really easy for open standards to be killed by big companies, and it's impossible to create a new, open standard and get adoption when big companies already own the space.

I will not listen to podcasts on Spotify, because Spotify cannot be allowed to own podcasts like Youtube owns video.

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#204

Post by Avenger42 »

quantumhobbit wrote: post #101
maxxxxx wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apple Podcasts has gotten worse pretty much every year. I have switched to Overcast and I find it excellent. Lean and clean.

Overcast seems to bug out on me everytime I try to play episodes in the order they were released instead of most recent first. It also never removes played episodes no matter what my settings. Seriously these should be simple things.

I had the same issue with it playing episodes in an awkward order because I wanted it to show me the episodes in "most-recent-first" order, but I wanted it to play in the reverse order. I got around it by creating smart playlists - I have some that are each for a single show, and I have a "back catalog" playlist for a group of podcasts where I'm catching up on older episodes, and it interweaves them all together based on their chronological release dates, so that if there's news that each one discusses, they generally get played back-to-back.

I've never had a problem with it not deleting episodes, so I can't help you there.

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#205

Post by rhinoceraptor »

spuz wrote: post #17

I am surprised that higher capacity storage on phones was not mentioned as a driver of podcast listenership. For me, when I upgraded to a phone that had 32GB of storage around 2014 I was finally able to store mp3s that would download automatically ready for me to listen to along with all the music and photos that we would otherwise fill up our phone storage with. Before this, it was actually pretty hard to be an avid…

I have fond memories when I was a teenager, loading my 80gb iPod video full of podcasts I could listen to on trips. The reason I even got into podcasts back then, was I didn't have any money to buy CDs or mp3s, but I could download as many podcasts as I wanted and it was awesome.

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#206

Post by peterwwillis »

Mister_Snuggles wrote: post #24

Personally, I'm not a fan of podcasts at all. I've tried, and listened to some interesting ones, but in the end I'd much rather consume the same content by reading instead of listening. It's faster, it's easier to skim and skip around, you can have hyperlinks to other references, etc. Overall, text just works better for the kinds of content I'm interested in. There's a podcast related to a product I work with that I'…

I don't know about you, but I find it hard to read while cooking, jogging, eating, driving, folding laundry, doing the dishes, sweeping/mopping.

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#207

Post by rhinoceraptor »

dgritsko wrote: post #20
spuz wrote: post #17

I am surprised that higher capacity storage on phones was not mentioned as a driver of podcast listenership. For me, when I upgraded to a phone that had 32GB of storage around 2014 I was finally able to store mp3s that would download automatically ready for me to listen to along with all the music and photos that we would otherwise fill up our phone storage with. Before this, it was actually pretty hard to be an avid…

This is a good point. Desktop/web clients have existed for a while, but I find that I listen to probably 90% of my podcasts on my smartphone. Prior to owning a phone with a large amount of storage, I just didn't really listen to podcasts (at least nowhere near the amount that I am now).

There was a sort of golden infancy period for podcasts, where if you had a iPod you could fit a ton of them on the spinning drive.

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#208

Post by jeremy7600 »

astura wrote: post #57
Mister_Snuggles wrote: post #24

Personally, I'm not a fan of podcasts at all. I've tried, and listened to some interesting ones, but in the end I'd much rather consume the same content by reading instead of listening. It's faster, it's easier to skim and skip around, you can have hyperlinks to other references, etc. Overall, text just works better for the kinds of content I'm interested in. There's a podcast related to a product I work with that I'…

Well, yeah, of course if you're just sitting in your living room you'd rather read than listen; however that's not really the use case of a Podcast. The value podcasts bring is you can consume them during times you can't read. During exercise, driving, walking to work, cleaning the house, cooking, and train/car rides (for people who get motion sick while reading in a moving vehicle). They turn tedious menial tasks in…

If you can pay attention while doing those things. I am not the OP, but if it isn't music, listening to anything while doing those things is a non-starter for me, especially driving.

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#209

Post by jeremy7600 »

macspoofing wrote: post #123
Mister_Snuggles wrote: post #24

Personally, I'm not a fan of podcasts at all. I've tried, and listened to some interesting ones, but in the end I'd much rather consume the same content by reading instead of listening. It's faster, it's easier to skim and skip around, you can have hyperlinks to other references, etc. Overall, text just works better for the kinds of content I'm interested in. There's a podcast related to a product I work with that I'…

Audio-only medium have benefits over text and video. For example, you don't need to be fully engaged to consume audio in the same way you need to be to consume text or video (i.e. it's easy to vacuum your house or drive a car while listening to a podcast. Not so easy while reading a book or watching a movie). >Overall, text just works better for the kinds of content I'm interested in. You're making such a weird argum…

>For example, you don't need to be fully engaged to consume audio in the same way you need to be to consume text or video (i.e. it's easy to vacuum your house or drive a car while listening to a podcast. Not so easy while reading a book or watching a movie).

As a personal anecdote, I DO need to be fully engaged to consume audio in the same way as text or video. Your example of vacuuming is a perfect example, while trying to pay attention to the carpet I'd stop paying attention to the podcast, and i'd have to rewind, which I find tedious.

Re: We're Entering a Golden Age of Podcasts

#210

Post by beat »

wenbin wrote: post #164
slg wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree, we might be leaving the golden age rather than entering it. The article mentions Spotify exclusive shows and we have already seen several other paywalled shows from companies like Audible and Stitcher. Meanwhile a number of podcasters are taking control of their own shows, not joining a podcast network or content company, and moving the show to platforms like Patreon. That is great for the content creators t…

It’s just a start. The podcast world will continue to be very fragmented. There are some small consolidation here and there. There are a few podcasts becoming paid / subscription based business. But most podcasts will be niche , small , and free. More fun people will start their own podcasts :)

I think it's like the indie music scene. Sure, some bands make a living at it, or try to. But most musicians are playing for the sheer joy of playing, going to a little club and making a racket for a dozen of their closest friends.

In the long run, there will be plenty of niche podcasts with dozens, maybe hundreds of listeners - not enough to make a living, but an audience is its own reward.

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