Podcasting emerged in the 2000s, propelled by radio veterans devoted to audio and narrative storytelling. But today, many of the most popular and lucrative podcasts are video shows, hosted by chatty personalities with large social media followings.
Amazon is betting that these two categories require different business models.“They didn't make sense to have under a single roof anymore,”Mr. Boom said in a phone interview on Monday.
For narrative shows, “the person telling the story isn't the product,”Mr. Boom said.“The story is the product.”
But video podcasts, with their“borderline explosive growth,”he continued, are the opposite: It's all about the talent, their fan bases and their franchise potential.
“It's about building an audience and then finding lots of different ways to monetize that audience,”Mr. Boom said. (Last year, for example, the Wondery children's science podcast “Wow in the World” began selling educational toys.)
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