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spotify We officially offer video podcasts Netflix.
The partnership will see the streaming company make select podcasts from The Ringer, the network Spotify acquired in 2020, available to U.S. users in early 2026.
The podcasts range from sports to culture to true crime and aim to complement Netflix’s current strategy and break away from The Ringer’s lineup to bring in new audiences. The companies said more markets outside the United States are planned for development.
“This partnership marks a new chapter in podcasting,” Roman Versenmuller, head of podcasting at Spotify, said in a statement. “Together with Netflix, we are expanding discovery and helping creators reach new audiences, giving fans around the world the chance to experience the stories they love and discover unexpected favorites. This gives creators more choice and opens up entirely new distribution opportunities.”
Lauren Smith, Netflix’s vice president of content licensing and programming strategy, said the carefully selected selection “adds a fresh voice and new perspective to Netflix.”
Shows coming to Netflix include “The Bill Simmons Podcast,” “The Rewatchables” and “Serial Killers,” with more expected after the premiere.
Spotify said the move is the next step in evolving the company into a multimedia experience, with more initiatives planned in the future to “bring similar opportunities to a broader range of creators.”
Tuesday’s announcement comes as media companies look to video podcasts as the next big thing for viewers. In particular, video podcasts are rapidly gaining popularity. Google YouTube is gaining a growing share of the viewership.
This has led traditional media and streaming companies to lean towards this medium.
This year’s Upfront advertising presentations included the following companies: Amazon’s Prime Video pointed to the recent success of its podcast content, with creators landing multi-million dollar deals and gaining millions of followers and views.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said during an April earnings call that the company is “constantly considering all types of content.” Sarandos added that the lines between podcasts and talk shows are becoming increasingly blurred.
“We want to work with great creators of all types of media that consumers love,” Sarandos said. “Podcasts…are much more video-based.”
—CNBC’s Lillian Rizzo contributed to this report.
