According to Spotify, “By enabling wide distribution of subscriber-only content, our aim is to help podcasters maximize their subscription audiences and grow them from their existing listener bases. Within Spotify, this content will be searchable and discoverable like any other podcast episode.”
Users can search for paid podcasts through the app, but if they want to subscribe, they’ll have to quit the app and pay through Anchor, which in turn helps the company avoid paying companies like Apple a 30% cut for in-app purchases. Spotify is hoping to draw creators to its platform by announcing that for the first two years, they will not be taking a cut of the revenue, but after that they will be taking a 5% cut, which they claim is highly competitive.
Podcasts have been gaining a lot of popularity in recent years. Not too long ago, Spotify managed to nab creator Joe Rogan where they convinced him to create podcasts exclusive to their platform.