The Standards Innovation Paradox

Today’s flourishing podcasting market is evidence that we can have a diverse and financially viable media market. We just have to stop gatekeeping in our markets for speech, prevent vertical integration, end the inappropriate use of other people’s data to let a middleman like Spotify inappropriately monetize art it didn’t create, and retain open st... See more

With this in mind, as with every platform, there exists a constant tension between value creation and value extraction. Substack is no exception to this. Virtually all the large platforms of today started off by initially focusing on value creation for their users and enabling them to succeed. Once users were successful and dependent on the platfor... See more

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

The challenge, or opportunity, for companies like Substack is to figure out how to help creators reach new audiences and grow without having to compromise on ownership. The aggregators of the early internet unlocked great power for creators through building central gathering places. We are doing the same with the Substack app and features—like Reco... See more

The growth of the podcasting ecosystem, the fragmentation of the online writing market, and the emergence of the “self actualization economy” provide a few examples where significant opportunities have opened up for companies building support infrastructure and distribution models to help emerging creators turn their passions and unique skills into... See more

Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie, and Jairaj Sethi started Substack in 2017, but their history dates back years before. Chris co-founded the anonymous posting app Kik during his third year at the University of Waterloo (2010). He spent the better part of eight years at the company where he met his soon-to-be co-founders. When Chris left Kik in early 201

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