Open or closed: Who will control the paid-podcast experience, podcasters or tech companies?

Spotify seems to be trying to build out control of advertising and distribution of podcasting. With gatekeeping power over listeners through its streaming service, and gatekeeping power over ad revenue through its advertising network, Spotify will eventually be able to force podcasters to live in its ecosystem. It won’t be impossible to get listene... See more

This gives the companies more control over hosting and distribution of podcasts, which will allow for better targeting and dynamic insertion for ads. Under this new paradigm, advertisers can achieve the same level of targeting and scale available on the Facebooks and YouTubes of the world.

But here's the thing: being able to say, "wherever you get your podcasts" is a radical statement . Because what it represents is the triumph of exactly the kind of technology that's supposed to be impossible: open, empowering tech that's not owned by any one company, that can't be controlled by any one company, and that allows people to have owners... See more