Apple is Gearing Up to Invest in Podcasts by Dawoud Kringle

On Tuesday July 16, 2019, Bloomburg News reported that Apple is planning to start funding original podcasts. Apple executives have been reaching out to media companies to discuss exclusive buying rights for podcasts, which would be exclusive to Apple.  

Apple does not earn revenue from its Podcasts app, but had expressed interest in exclusive content as a way to generate income, draw and retain customers, and to better compete with Spotify.

While Apple has not yet outlined a clear strategy for its plans, the company will be pursuing this new strategy. They’ve also been funding original content for their upcoming Apple TV+ series. This strategy works in concert with their investments in other kinds of exclusive content.

Apple’s efforts to move into exclusive podcast content could impact Spotify’s efforts to become a major source for podcast content. This was reflected in Spotify’s stock falling 1.89% (giving it a $27.34bn market cap) as a result of this announcement.

In related news, Apple Music challenged Spotify’s flagship hip-hop playlist RapCaviar with a re-branded version of The A-List: Hip-Hop called Rap Life. Rap Life’s content will feature new hip-hop, determined by Apple Music’s editorial curators.