PodMov Daily: Friday, January 28

Episode 579: Week Download Complete

Spotify Will Choose Joe Rogan Every Time, Always

This week’s controversy makes one thing clear: A content policy is just a distraction if it will never apply to one valuable asset. True to its word, Spotify has taken “the appropriate enforcement action” toward Joe Rogan’s threats to public health. That action (none) is consistently profitable, and therefore appropriate.

Yesterday Ashley Carman broke down the many reasons Spotify can’t afford to lose The JRE. The ad revenue alone is staggering — Neil Young had no chance of interrupting that. Once they accept it, podcasters angered by the company’s stance are faced with a personal moderation question: Where do they draw the line?

The newsletter platform Substack, also in hot water, similarly profits from a ‘hands off’ approach. Harvard researcher Joan Donovan has this to say: “Clear policy will ensure they can enforce their terms early on before a creator has caused so much damage that it’s impossible to separate bad actors from a bad product.”

The BBC to Experiment with Exclusive Podcasts

The BBC plans to experiment with podcast exclusivity in March, according to the British comedy site Chortle. Friday Night Comedy and several others will be only on the BBC Sounds app for 28 days, at which point they’ll be distributed everywhere else. The show is regularly in Apple Podcasts’ top 10 comedies in Great Britain.

BBC reps reportedly said in a statement: “The global tech giants are more routinely publishing content exclusively on their platforms. We want to make sure people can easily find new things from the BBC and can’t rely on other platforms, who have their own exclusive content and a global catalogue to promote, to do this for us.”

It’s clear that they really, really want more users on the app. However, The News Quiz and much of Friday Night Comedy is topical, and fans who decide not to switch will be left listening to riffs on month-old headlines. Could this test have a positive outcome? We haven’t seen this covered elsewhere but will keep an eye out.

Happy Friday, readers! And now, some goofy satire to round out the week.

Here's what else is going on:

• Group chat: “Social Media for Podcasts” from SoundPath is coming up on February 10. Hosted by LWC Studios’ Marketing Lead Manuela Bedoya, the 90-minute webinar will focus on efficient techniques to “upcycle” content while balancing multiple roles. $10 registration for non-AIR members.

• Secret lab: To craft a great podcast ad, study first. This week’s “anatomy of an ad” from ThoughtLeaders breaks down a spot on Tom Segura’s 2 Bears, 1 Cave. Can a VPN service ad actually be funny? The experts look at the copy, hook, pitch, offer, and landing page to explain how it’s done.

• Get paid: AIR has updated its rate guides for 2021/2022. These resources and their Day Rate Calculator help independent podcast producers set fair and reasonable rates (and determine realistic budgets). The main guide has current numbers for sound design, engineering, editing, and more.

• Trying times: Stephanie Coombes has read “a LOT of resumes” for podcast producer jobs, and is often disappointed by the same mistakes. “Want to avoid them? Good! I want to stop seeing them,” she writes on LinkedIn. To ignore part of an application is to waste your shot at the gig.