Apple leads the next chapter of podcasting with Apple Podcasts Subscriptions

Toronto, Ontario Apple today unveiled Apple Podcasts Subscriptions, a global marketplace for listeners to discover premium subscriptions offered by their favourite creators alongside millions of free shows on Apple Podcasts.

Starting in May, listeners in more than 170 countries and regions can sign up for premium subscriptions that include a variety of benefits curated by creators, such as ad-free listening, access to additional content, and early or exclusive access to new series. Listeners will be able to enjoy premium subscriptions from independent voices and premier studios, including Tenderfoot TV, Pushkin Industries, Radiotopia from PRX, and QCODE, to leading media and entertainment brands, including NPR, the Los Angeles Times, The Athletic, Sony Music Entertainment, and many more.

“Fifteen years ago, Apple took podcasts mainstream, offering creators a premier, open platform to inform, entertain, and inspire hundreds of millions of listeners around the world,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “Today, Apple Podcasts is the best place for listeners to discover and enjoy millions of great shows, and we are proud to lead the next chapter of podcasting with Apple Podcasts Subscriptions. We’re excited to introduce this powerful new platform to creators around the world, and we can’t wait to hear what they make with it.”

Also next month, listeners will be able to discover channels, which are groups of shows curated by creators with unique titles, descriptions, and artwork. Just as they can with shows, listeners will be able to browse free channels, which make it easy to find more shows from their favourite creators, as well as paid channels and channels that provide additional benefits for subscribers.

With iOS 14.5, listeners can access a redesigned Apple Podcasts app featuring an enhanced Search tab that provides quick access to Top Charts and categories. Apple Podcasts also features beautiful new pages for every show and episode to make it easier to follow, listen, and share. The new Smart Play button helps listeners automatically start episodic shows from the latest episode and serialized shows from the beginning of the series. Listeners can also now save individual episodes to Library, which are downloaded for offline playback, making it easy to bookmark podcasts to listen to later.

The new Apple Podcasts for Creators website helps creators learn more about podcasting, stay informed about the latest news and features, and explore in-depth guides with best practices. Starting today, all creators can access an updated Apple Podcasts Connect dashboard, which has new features that make it easier to manage shows on Apple Podcasts, including the ability to edit metadata, schedule and manage show availability, organize shows into channels, manage multiple users and roles, and learn how listeners are engaging with their shows through new performance metrics and visualization tools. From Apple Podcasts Connect, creators can enrol in the new Apple Podcasters Program, which provides access to all the tools needed to build and distribute premium subscriptions on Apple Podcasts.

Podcasts have made it possible for creators to share their voices with listeners around the world. Apple Podcasts Subscriptions takes this unique relationship to the next level by offering creators a way to tighten the bond with their most engaged listeners:

Martina Abrahams Ilunga, CEO and chief editor of You Had Me at Black: “As an independent show that started five years ago, we’ve always been powered by our community. And our community is hungry for more! More stories and more episodes — sooner. Apple Podcasts Subscriptions empowers us to deliver that. With our subscription, listeners can hear new seasons and episodes first, before anyone else, while also supporting our growth and sustainability.”

Donald Albright, president and co-founder of Tenderfoot TV: “With TenderfootPlus+, we’re able to provide our listening community even more of what they want — exclusive, early access and ad-free listening for our tentpole titles and new shows. Launching this subscription on Apple Podcasts, where the large majority of our listeners engages with us each week, makes it easy for the Tenderfoot audience to seamlessly upgrade to the best experience.”

Alex Mather, founder and CEO of The Athletic: “Our team loves bringing deeply immersive storytelling to maniacal sports fans around the world, and our listeners tune in to over a million hours of sports news, analysis, and storytelling each week. We know true sports fans are always looking for stories about their clubs and teams told through a new lens, and with Apple Podcasts Subscriptions, we can deliver even more great stories in an all new way, ad free, directly through Apple Podcasts.”

Podcasts have also become an important way to understand what’s happening in the world. Listeners turn to podcasts to make sense of major moments in news and culture. With Apple Podcasts Subscriptions, listeners gain a simple and intuitive way to support quality programming from newspapers, magazines, digital publishers, local radio stations, and more, directly from Apple Podcasts:

John F. Lansing, president and CEO of NPR: “Apple has been a valued partner to our podcasting work since it all started back in 2005, and we support their plan to enable a new revenue source for content creators on their platform. Apple Podcasts Subscriptions will provide another opportunity for listeners to support their favourite podcasters at NPR and our Member stations in our mission to create a more informed public.”

Chris Argentieri, president and chief operating officer of the Los Angeles Times: “Subscriptions have always been an important source of support for our business, and podcasting has established itself as a powerful medium for large audiences to engage with our brand of journalism and storytelling. The ability to marry the two with Apple Podcasts Subscriptions will allow us to expand our audio offerings to cover new formats, stories, communities, and more.”

Stefan Ottlitz, co-CEO and head of product for Der Spiegel, one of the top news publishers in Germany: “Audio is a uniquely powerful medium that provides Der Spiegel an opportunity to deeply engage audiences so they can form a meaningful relationship with our brand. We’re pleased to see this significant investment in podcasting from Apple, which will open doors to new, long-term revenue opportunities that will further empower us to pursue even more ambitious independent audio journalism.”

With Apple Podcasts Subscriptions, the freedom to develop and enjoy entirely new audio storytelling experiences will redefine podcasting in ways that are surprising and gratifying for creators and listeners alike:

Maggie McGuire, CEO of Pinna, an on-demand audio entertainment service for kids: “Apple Podcasts Subscriptions empowers Pinna to deliver the very best storytelling for kids and their families. Our ad-free subscriptions will feature a collection of award-winning original series, including action-adventures, mysteries, comedies, game shows, musicals, and much more. We couldn’t be more excited to connect kids around the globe with their next favourite podcast.”

Dennis Kooker, president of Global Digital Business and US Sales at Sony Music Entertainment: “Apple is putting creators first with their approach to the subscription model. Offering subscriptions provides new flexibility and options for consumers, and is an important addition to helping creators better monetize their works. All of this will lead to more investment and even better shows for podcast fans.”

Malcolm Gladwell and Jacob Weisberg, co-founders of Pushkin Industries: “Podcasting totally changed my approach to storytelling, and Apple Podcasts Subscriptions is a mind shift,” said Gladwell, who also hosts Revisionist History. “Our producers and I have so many ideas that don’t fit into existing models but will now have an outlet. This is a big step forward in the evolution of the audio content business, and we are excited about it.” Added Weisberg: “Podcasting exists, and thrives, today because of Apple. Apple Podcasts Subscriptions will help us connect more deeply with our listeners and build a healthy business. We strongly believe that paid subscriptions are what independent creators like us need to succeed and thrive over the long term, and we’re thrilled that Apple is taking the lead.”