Is Spotify in Trouble? New CEOs Face Double Threat from YouTube and Netflix
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Welcome back to the Rundown, interview edition. Today, we are talking to Ashley Carman, a reporter at Bloomberg that covers the podcast and music industry. In today's conversation, we discussed everything from Spotify and why their stock is down 30%, the new CEOs coming in, and how much longer Spotify can keep raising prices. We also discussed Netflix's jump into the podcasting space, and if we finally reached peak podcasts. This was a really fun conversation for me. I think you guys will enjoy it as well. All right, let's get into it. Ashley, Carmen, thank you so much for coming on The Rundown today.
Thanks for having me.
Of course. I'm really excited to talk to you because you report on podcasting for a living, which is fantastic. I love podcasts. I listen to podcasts all the time, and I host a podcast as well. So I wanted to start this off by asking you, what does a podcast mean in 2026? Because I feel like the definition is always changing. I have no idea what a podcast is anymore.
Oh, my God. I mean, you went for basically the spiciest question you can ask anyone in podcasting because literally right now as we speak, the podcast industry is really going through kind of an existential crisis where no one can define what a podcast is anymore. It was a battle when people started calling podcasts on YouTube podcasts because they technically don't have RSS feeds on YouTube. But then the industry started to kind of accept that. Now podcasts on Netflix, where maybe they're called a video podcast but literally don't exist anywhere but Netflix, this is where I think people are now really struggling. For me personally, if a show has an existence on Apple Podcasts because it's audio only and that is RSS feeds, for me personally, then I will call it a podcast.
pete davidson exclusive show on netflix or exclusive podcast on netflix isn't really a podcast per your definition it's just like a netflix exclusive show right that's that's for me personally how i see it but you know again these are really shifting definitions because everyone's claiming the word podcast now and they're like the hottest thing in media so The big shift happened, I feel like probably what, maybe two or three years ago where it went from audio only, you know, most of the podcasts that I used to listen to were audio only. And then everything shifted to video like right after post COVID. And I think that's when like the change started happening where like podcasts essentially started becoming like,
I don't know, like talk shows, you know, where people just put them on in the background on YouTube especially and just would listen to them during the day while they're working, while they're working out. And so I feel like that's when like the definition started getting a little murky because it went from just being audio only to being like a full-on production with graphics and everything. And we do that here too. We started, you know, went from audio only to video about a year, six, seven months ago. So it's starting to happen to everyone now.
Absolutely, yes. YouTube has become a huge giant in this space. It has become the most popular place for people to consume podcasts, according to Edison Research. So very quickly, YouTube, of course, video platform, the industry started to reorganize around this reality.
So I want to – before we get into the YouTube stuff, I want to talk about Spotify because I feel like they're – they started – they tried to make a big splash into podcasting. They had those nine-figure deals with Call Her Daddy back in the day. Then there was the Joe Rogan exclusive deals, and they tried to really kind of corner the podcast space. I don't think it really worked out. So I want to kind of get your take on where is Spotify right now as a podcasting platform?
So yes, to your point, Spotify really leaned in when they first entered the space into exclusives. So Joe Rogan was available exclusively on Spotify. They ended up switching up that strategy. He is now available on YouTube and audio platforms all over.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–4:05
2
How is the definition of a podcast changing in 2026?
4:05–12:45
3
Why has YouTube become the top destination for podcast consumption?
12:45–13:42
4
What did Spotify’s early exclusive podcast strategy get them?
13:42–20:19
5
How are Spotify’s leadership changes affecting investor confidence?
20:19–26:48
Speakers
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