Amazon in Exclusive Talks to Buy Podcast Startup Wondery

Amazon is in exclusive talks with podcast startup Wondery about a potential acquisition, reports The Wall Street Journal. Rumors earlier this month suggested that Wondery had also held talks with Apple and Sony Music Entertainment as it shopped for a buyer.

Apple Podcast Alternate
Wondery is said to be looking for $300 to $400 million, and it is known for popular true crime podcasts that include "Dirty John," "Over My Dead Body," "Dr. Death." Apple's discussions were in the early stages in November, but if Wondery is in exclusive talks with Amazon, Apple is likely out of the running.

A Wondery purchase would have provided Apple with a library of original content along with a source for ideas that could be turned into TV shows in the future. Wondery is already working on TV shows based on podcasts, including a WeWork series that will premiere on Apple TV+.

It's possible that Wondery's price tag was too high for Apple, but if Wondery is purchased by Amazon, Amazon will be another serious competitor in the podcasting space alongside Spotify. According to The Wall Street Journal, Amazon is aiming to push further into podcasts.

Apple too has been aiming to better compete with Spotify when it comes to podcasts, and rumors have suggested that Apple is looking to buy original podcasts. Apple has been looking for podcasts that could be adapted into ‌Apple TV‌+ content, and it also plans to create podcasts that will augmnet its TV shows.

Apple has already purchased podcasting companies. In 2017, it bought Pop Up Archive to improve search, and in early 2020, it bought podcasting service Scout FM, which turns podcast shows into radio-style stations.

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Top Rated Comments

iObama Avatar
52 months ago
Remember when podcasts were fun and non-exclusive, but people still made money from them? Me too.

Shoulda known it wouldn’t last ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
phgreer Avatar
52 months ago
Wondery Rocks! Especially the Steven Johnson stuff!
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ghanwani Avatar
52 months ago

Wondery is said to be looking for $300 to $400 million...
Wonder if they'll find it.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FloatingBones Avatar
52 months ago
We need to invent a term for podcasts that are available anywhere and are not "exclusive" behind some #!$$ paywall.

I'm for Open Access Podcasts.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
smoking monkey Avatar
52 months ago
The big companies are really sinking their teeth into Podcasts. Desperate to squeeze it for everything they can.

I sometimes listen to the Conan O'brien Pod and while many of the guests are full of their own sh*t and peddling something, some of them have funny stories and it's good for a laugh. And having a laugh in these times is just what is needed. But I've noticed recently that the ads on it are out of control. We are talking about 5-6 mins of wall to wall ads. What they don't realise is that Siri is capable of skipping ahead the number of minutes you tell it to! Hazzah! Let's just see how long before that funtion is disabled or if the FF button is taken off us. You'd like to think not, but I wouldn't be surprised...
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Digital Dude Avatar
52 months ago
I guess this is what innovation looks like these days'.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)