Subscription podcasting is not a breakout success

I’m honestly baffled the company managed to raise more money no matter the terms." Thompson was discussing Luminary, a podcasting app that raised another $30 million despite the odds against it. A Nieman Lab report included hard numbers: a pre-COVID $4m monthly spend to acquire just 80,000 paid users (compare this to the Spotify ecosystem seen belo... See more

It’s becoming increasingly common to monetize podcasts via a direct connection with listeners, whether via merchandise, donations, live events, or bonus or ad-free content. Big networks and publishers are doing it (e.g., Wondery Plus, Stitcher Premium, Slate Plus) and independent creators are too (via Patreon, Memberful, or other solutions).