Apple today announced Apple Podcasts Subscriptions, allowing users to unlock additional podcast benefits such as ad-free listening, access to additional content, and early or exclusive access to new series.
Apple says that users will be able to enjoy a range of premium subscriptions from NPR, the Los Angeles Times, Sony Music Entertainment, and more. Listeners will also be able to access channels, which are groups of shows that feature unique titles, descriptions, and artwork. Apple Podcasts Subscriptions will be available in over 170 countries in May.
With iOS 14.5, the Podcasts app is gaining a major redesign with an enhanced Search tab and updated pages for shows and episodes. There's also a new Smart Play button that lets users automatically start the latest episode from episodic shows. Additionally, users can download individual episodes for offline playback, making podcast listening more accessible.
Apple also unveiled a new Apple Podcasts for Creators website that is designed to help creators learn more about podcasting. Creators can also now access an updated Apple Podcasts Connect dashboard that has new features to make it easier to manage shows on Apple Podcasts, and creators can use the site to enroll in the Apple Podcasters Program to access the tools needed to build and distribute premium subscriptions on Apple Podcasts.
This story was part of our live coverage of Apple's ongoing "Spring Loaded" event today. Read our live blog for a recap of other announcements.
Tuesday November 19, 2024 12:12 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Barclays analyst Tom O'Malley and his colleagues recently traveled to Asia to meet with various electronics manufacturers and suppliers. In a research note this week, outlining key takeaways from the trip, the analysts said they have "confirmed" that a fourth-generation iPhone SE with an Apple-designed 5G modem is slated to launch towards the end of the first quarter next year. In line with previo...
Sunday November 17, 2024 5:18 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple released the AirTag in April 2021, so it is now three over and a half years old. While the AirTag has not received any hardware updates since then, a new version of the item tracking accessory is rumored to be in development.
Below, we recap rumors about a second-generation AirTag.
Timing
Apple is aiming to release a new AirTag in mid-2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman....
Sunday November 17, 2024 3:03 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
While the Logitech MX Master 3 is a terrific mouse for the Mac, reports claiming that Apple CEO Tim Cook prefers that mouse over the Magic Mouse are false.
The Wall Street Journal last month published an interview with Cook, in which he said he uses every Apple product every day. Soon after, The Verge's Wes Davis attempted to replicate using every Apple product in a single day. During that...
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Apple today released iOS 18.1.1 and iPadOS 18.1.1, minor updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that debuted earlier in September. iOS 18.1.1 and iPadOS 18.1.1 come three weeks after the launch of iOS 18.1.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Apple has also released iOS 17.7.2 for...
Monday November 18, 2024 1:07 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
In a research note with Hong Kong-based investment bank Haitong today, obtained by MacRumors, Apple analyst Jeff Pu said he agrees with a recent rumor claiming that the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" will be around 6mm thick.
"We agreed with the recent chatter of an 6mm thickness ultra-slim design of the iPhone 17 Slim model," he wrote.
If that measurement proves to be accurate, there would be ...
Tuesday November 19, 2024 10:52 am PST by Juli Clover
The iOS 18.1.1, iPadOS 18.1.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1.1 updates that Apple released today address JavaScriptCore and WebKit vulnerabilities that Apple says have been actively exploited on some devices.
With the JavaScriptCore vulnerability, processing maliciously crafted web content could lead to arbitrary code execution. The WebKit vulnerability had the same issue with maliciously crafted...
Wednesday November 20, 2024 3:42 am PST by Tim Hardwick
AT&T has begun displaying "Turbo" in the iPhone carrier label for customers subscribed to its premium network prioritization service, according to reports on Reddit. The new indicator seems to have started appearing after users updated to iOS 18.1.1, but that could be just coincidence.
Image credit: Reddit user No_Highlight7476
The Turbo feature provides enhanced network performance through ...
Wednesday November 13, 2024 2:09 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 next month, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls incoming as well....
Ahhhh crap... so they will put an add engine into their podcast app, and you’ll need a subscription to disable it? I really hate how everything is about making more and more money now.
Ahhhh crap... so they will put an add engine into their podcast app, and you’ll need a subscription to disable it? I really hate how everything is about making more and more money now.
I’m assuming ad-free listening means ad-free versions of podcasts that usually have, as the industry puts it, “content native ads” (ie sponsor breaks hard encoded in the podcast). The idea is something like Patreon or Twitch (or like Apple News+), where, by subscribing to the service and subscribing to a participating podcast, Apple pays the podcasters. Like with Patreon, a podcast could also set up special episodes for supporters or early access, as well.
In other words, Patreon, except with Apple billing.
Edit: Not a bad thing, one fewer account to manage. I forgot my wallet back home the other day and thought I might have been pickpocketed. So I replaced my card right away, just in case. It’s been a slog changing everywhere important that I used the old card at.
Podcast exclusivity is even worse. I hate the move to having ads everywhere. Both within the app itself and during the podcast itself. But I have no issue with supporting my podcast creators by listening to ads during the podcast as long as it doesn't get out of hand and the volume level of the ads aren't completely out of sync. On the other hand, exclusivity makes podcasting that has always been a free and open market being funnelled into specific apps is just terrible.
I don't want to use Spotify for listening to podcasts. Funnelling "premium" podcasts into Spotify and Spotify only creates fragmentation, and I won't be shuffling several apps to keep on top of my podcasts. And a lot of these apps have their strength and weakness. I love to have the freedom to choose whatever app provides me with the best experience and have all my podcasts playable within that app. If I cannot play a podcast using Castro, my current preferred podcast app, I will ignore those podcasts.
If Apple becomes more serious with this "premium" trend in the podcasting world, they need to put much more effort into the podcast app. It's just terrible for managing, sorting, and prioritising podcasts. It still lacks basic features like smart play / shorten silence and volume normalisation that you get from great third-party podcasting apps like Castro Pocket Cast and Overcast.
The worst part with using Apple's podcast app is how it doesn't stay in sync between my M1 Mac mini and my iPhone 12 Pro Max. I did my best to get some kind of prioritising going within the app. As the utilities to do so is so limited, I just had to move my podcast around, so my most prioritised ones are at the top. But as soon as I got this completed on my phone, it was still not sorted the same way in the podcast app on my Mac. And If I tried to make changes on my Mac, it would reset the sorting on my iPhone. Come on now, Apple, how hard could this be?
