“Apple quietly released an app called Podcasts this week. The app enables the discovery, organization and playing of podcasts on an iPhone,” Mike Elgan writes for Datamation.
“Apple’s new Podcasts app contains two surprising but telling features, Elgan explains. “One makes listening to ads optional; the other creates a way to sell podcasts via iTunes using Apple’s agency model.”
Elgan writes, “It’s a carrot and a stick to podcasters: We’re going to reduce the value of your advertising by letting people skip them; but don’t worry, you can monetize by moving to a paid model. I think this is the direction Apple intends to move all content available on iTunes. Even TV? Especially TV.”
Read more in the full article – recommended – here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Dan K.” for the heads up.]
Pay for a Podcast?
Off the top of my head, it looks like Apple wants to move in on Audible’s turf. Audible is owned by Amazon, and given that state of things in the e-book world, Amazon is an enemy of Apple.
I’d rather have some ads instead…
I agree 100%
I had a real good hunch this was coming. I find this to be a real problem.
Why?
Because I have no desire whatsoever to be nickel and dime’d to death paying for everything and anything that can be consumed media-wise.
I have no problem with advertising… within acceptable bounds, of course. Such as the type that provided most of the U.S. with TV content for over half a century.
Oh well. Good thing I didn’t listen to that many podcasts to begin with. I guess I’ll listen to even less in the future.
I hate the ad model. I pay for television service (using unnecessarily complex tiers), then I have to watch too many shitty ads (double dipping sucks). I can’t wait for Apple to muscle into TV territory. I’ll gladly pay for quality programming. As for the rest, flush it where it belongs.
I understand your frustration, but I was speaking of over-the-air broadcasting. Not cable or satellite. However, even with those two methods of media transmission, totally ad free programming was never part of the equation.
When, and if, Apple muscles into TV territory, it won’t be widely available, nor inexpensive.
To paraphrase an old adage, one person’s quality programming is another person’s garbage.
What assurances will there be that Apple won’t play the role of “quality programming” gatekeeper (censor) and prevent certain types of programs from being transmitted via their rumored method, like they already do with books in the iBookstore?
This is unfortunately is the future for podcasts and other content. I prefer just listening to the advertising, but Apple wants a slice of the pie so there will be very few free podcasts if any soon. Thank God I can watch Leo Laporte live on twit.tv.
Leo is the king of all twits! His TNT show has grown more and more pro-Android and anti-Apple in the 2 years I’ve been watching. I’m just grateful I don’t have to put up with his blather directly or I would for sure stop watching TNT.
He’s basing this on the fact that you can skip forward 30 secs in the podcast app, that’s all.
I HATE commercials with a passion. Usually I mute the TV, which is the original form of skipping. In this age of being able to instantly select content, TV ads are a throw-back that tries to control my precious viewing time. My blood boils every time the program is interrupted. My TV viewing time has been reduced dramatically over the last two years as a result.
Price it correctly and I think thisodel will be another grand slam home run.
“I HATE commercials with a passion”
Hate IS a passion, so your statement is redundant.
Just sayin’…
I always record tv and skip commercials. Radio and podcasts I don’t mind the ads for some reason.
Probably because I’m usually laying in bed, or working when I have the radio on.
I can’t believe these comments – who the hell likes advertisement? What is wrong with you people? Advertisements are annoying, waste energy, waste bandwidth, waste my time, waste everyone’s time, they overtly manipulate people into buying crap they don’t need, they give false information, they call you fat then give really bad weight loss advice, they tell you to ask your doctor for drugs that can be harmful and possibly habit forming, they tell you that Windows Vista is great, they subconsciously manipulate people, and they create an economy where every person’s free time & attention is a commodity being sold to every unscrupulous group willing to pay. Please nickel and dime my wallet, not my brain: my money is far more expendable than my thoughts.
I refuse to just sit there and let advertisements wash over me. I’ll mute, fast forward, opt out, spam filter, adblock, pay extra, and pirate my way around every advertisement you can throw at me – Fuck sitting through all that self depriving mind mutilating bullshit.
+1
May I say I agree with every word you have said and I probably speak for millions of people who also think the same. The only concern I have is it is very expensive to create tv shows and the income from individuals compared to advertisers might not be enough to support quality programming.
Two points:
1) Shutting out ads is an OPTION. So if you like the sound of ads, don’t tick the box.
2) Selling podcasts is an OPTION. Don’t like to pay, don’t pay. And if your favourite podcast now costs money, blame the podcaster, not Apple.