In a survey, Spotify hints at plans for a subscription podcast service; the survey describes at least four plans, ranging from $3 to $8 per month
No music included — Spotify appears to be interested in launching a subscription podcast service that would offer access to original shows or exclusive episodes for a monthly fee.
The VergeJacob Kastrenakes
Context & Ripple Effects
The survey floats at least four podcast-only plans between $3 and $8 a month, with no music included — Spotify testing whether original and exclusive shows can carry their own paywall on top of the $9.99 Premium subscription. Two months later, Apple was reportedly exploring its own paid-podcast service (Apple weighing a paid podcast offering), so both dominant audio platforms were probing the same willingness-to-pay question within weeks of each other.
First-order effects
Spotify gets price-point data for unbundling podcasts from its core subscription, creating a second revenue line aimed at listeners who want originals and exclusive episodes but not another full music plan.
Second-order effects
Apple's parallel exploration signals neither platform can let the other own paid podcasts exclusively; the $3–$8 range also gives Spotify a template for the add-on and premium-tier ladder it later pursued in the "Supremium" HiFi tier and the $6 Music Pro add-on.
Third-order effects
If the pattern holds, audio streaming moves away from one-flat-price music subscriptions toward stacked, content-specific tiers — with exclusives becoming the differentiator that justifies each rung, and each new tier risking cannibalization of the bundles below it.
The trend: Audio streaming is shifting from single flat-rate subscriptions toward layered, per-content-type tiers where exclusive originals justify each price rung.
Sure looks like @Spotify is considering launching a premium podcast plan based on the survey I was prompted to fill out when I opened its app this morning... https://twitter.com/...
@awallenstein
Andrew Wallenstein on x
Looks like the premium podcast plan would be ad-free and some mix of exclusive extra content at price points somewhere between $3-$8. https://twitter.com/...
@elite_gz
Jaime Brooks on x
if you're going to split up audio into different subscriptions why stop here? do a music subscription tier that's cheaper but doesn't include any major label content. a new music tier that's cheaper but doesn't include anything over 5yrs old https://twitter.com/...
@ashleyrcarman
Ashley Carman on x
huhhh... is joe rogan's podcast worth $3-$8 a month? https://www.theverge.com/...
@bradleywithane
Bradley Miller on x
It should be known that Spotify: -has exclusive rights to multiple big name podcasts -owns several podcast networks -owns the most used free podcast hosting platform Spotify definitely has the ability to put podcasting behind a paywall. https://twitter.com/...
@trengriffin
Tren Griffin on x
The potential size of the total addressable market for podcasts is an interesting question. One pricing strategy is to charge a substantial fee to a smaller number of users and another to charge lower fee to try to capture the mass market. Ad supported is another. Or a mix. https…
@daveambrose
Dave Ambrose on x
one of the disruptive ways Spotify *could* further monetize the long tail of podcasting talent (and if this subscription offering does roll out) is to split recurring payments to creators ads are still the predominant means of income for podcasters but it's not predictable https:…