Google Podcasts adds a privacy warning

Sounds Profitable with Gumball this week looks at merch - merch we’ve even mentioned admiringly in the past in this very newsletter. Bryan interviews the creator of Were You Raised By Wolves, Nick Leighton.

• A content warning and privacy notice has been added to the Google Podcasts app, in multiple languages and territories. The app is a top 5 podcast player according to most podcast hosts - the notice links to this page.

  • The message makes it clear that Google doesn’t host content (stories from Sky News UK, the Brookings Institution and others have highlighted content issues in podcasting recently). The company already blocks some podcasts from under 18s and people not signed in.
  • The message also, curiously, highlights that IP addresses are passed through to podcast hosting companies if you play an episode. This is also the case when you click on a website in Google Search, so we’ve asked Google why it’s there, and what’s so special about podcasts to merit this un-nerving warning.

• Spotify has shut down its original podcasting studio, known internally as Studio 4. 15 people will be either moved to other roles or made redundant. Described as a “junk drawer” by one staffer, the division produced the shows that weren’t produced by Gimlet, Parcast or The Ringer (which Spotify purchased later). Shows don’t appear to be cancelled.

• Amazon Music Podcasts has more than 200,000 podcasts, and “55 million customers”, according to a podcast creator outreach document being shared by the company. It says that you’ll be able to track your download numbers in their dashboard “soon”.

• Content partnerships: Cadence13 has partnered with Dana Carvey and David Spade for a new weekly podcast series, called Fly on the Wall … Slate has signed a multi-year strategic agreement with Forever Dog, a comedy and culture podcast publisher … PRX has announced partnerships with Magnificent Noise, WaitWhat, and Skeptoid Media to distribute and monetise their shows … AdLarge has signed Honeydew Me, which hit #1 in Apple Podcasts this week … Global’s DAX has signed How To Fail with Elizabeth Day (Brené Brown is the first guest in a new season today).

• Acast has launched a new campaign to inspire creators to start their own podcast, called First Words.

Tips and tricks - with Podpage

• Here’s Amazon Music Podcasts on Instagram, called @playmorepods. Want your show to be promoted on it? You’ll want this submission form.

This link is no longer available, as at Sep 10 2023
• While we’re at it, here’s a form to get your podcast submitted in Stitcher.

Podcast News - with Quill

Produced by Quill: C Suite Join Claudette McGowan, TD Bank’s Global Executive Officer for Cyber Security, as she explores how cyber-attacks happen and what we can do to avoid them. From phishing schemes to robocalls, Claudette meets with C Suite leaders to discuss cyber challenges and ways to help people become more protected.

Hello Sunshine and iHeartMedia launch Time Out: A Fair Play Podcast today. Hosted by New York Times bestselling author of Fair Play Eve Rodsky and physician Dr. Aditi, the show invites listeners to learn how to take back their time, with science-backed solutions, humor, personal insights and practical tips. Their first guest is Matthew Fray, a relationship coach who went viral from writing a New York Times article about getting divorced over dishes.

Gold Medal Loser with Lolo Jones is the latest podcast from Blue Wire. Sponsored by Discover, it looks at the career ups and downs of major celebrities across sports, entertainment, fashion, and music. Lolo Jones is competing in the Winter Olympics US Women’s bobsled team. - read more

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