Pocket Casts acquired

• Pocket Casts, which is an iOS, Android and desktop podcast app, has been purchased by a combined public radio group of WNYC, NPR, WBEZ and This American Life. The team announced on their blog that they’re all joining the new venture, and the ethos behind it will not change. Here’s the full press release. Congratulations to Russell (who’s a very nice man) and the rest of the team; of note: Owen Grover (ex iHeartRadio) will serve as CEO.

Sadly we chose to not sell our souls or you all out for crazy amounts of cash money, which means that you owe us one. - Shifty Jelly

• Overcast, an iOS podcast app, has been updated to v4.2. It’s an aggressive privacy update: removing the need to register with an email address, and deliberately hampering podcast publishers’ efforts to track images shown in show notes. “Big data ruined the web, and I’m not going to help bring it to podcasts. Publishers already get enough from Apple to inform ad rates and make content decisions — they don’t need more data from my customers”, says developer Marco Arment. (Of note: Apple Podcast Analytics does not monitor Overcast at all).

• The Spoon, a food blog, loves Trader Joe’s new podcast (and begs others not to copy it.)

• Blubrry write how to take advantage of Google’s podcasting strategy.

• Disney is launching its first podcast - Disney Backstage will look into production stories behind its animated movies.

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• Wondery also announce a new podcast, American Innovations, which will “tell the stories of the scientists, engineers, and ordinary people behind the greatest discoveries of the past century”. Fans of wifi, the black box recorder, the electric drill and the ultrasound scanner are going to be out of luck.

Welcome to our new subscribers, who this week include The New York Times, MPR, Wondery, Art19, Boston University, Castbox, WNYC, Radio NZ, The Wireless Group, Aiir, ESPN, Swedish Radio, Wise Buddah, NTR and Mediacom.