People who subscribe to Amazon Music or the company’s audiobook service, Audible, may reportedly soon be able to download and enjoy free podcasts using each service.
According to a confidential email distributed to some show producers yesterday, obtained by The Desk, Amazon might soon permit Amazon Music and Audible users to subscribe, download and stream free podcasts using each service, as a way to lure and retain subscribers. Free Amazon podcasts will also be available to people the free Amazon Music tier.
For the time being, Amazon does not plan to distribute some podcast shows exclusively, like Spotify does, but that could easily change down the road. The e-commerce giant reportedly contacted some show producers to invite them to participate in the upcoming offering.
“Amazon reached out to top podcast producers with an offer to submit their show’s feed before the feature becomes available to its 55 million users across Amazon Music and Audible,” the report has it.
Furthermore, Amazon reportedly requires podcast producers to agree to certain terms, such as avoiding comments that disparage Amazon or its products. Aside from Amazon, other technology giants host podcasts as well, including Google and Spotify.
Apple, as you know, has mainstreamed podcasts when it added podcasts shows to iTunes some years ago. The Apple Podcasts services is now available as an iOS and macOS app, acting as a directory of open podcast shows and a player for them.
Apple is thought to have been discussing subscriptions with podcast producers, as well as other avenues of monetization such as advertising. So far, however, those alleged efforts have not yielded any tangible results.