Spotify opens up on why Meghan and Harry's podcast was axed after couple branded: 'F***ing grifters'
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex shared that their partnership with Spotify had come to an end in June 2023.
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Spotify's CEO has opened up on the reason the streaming giant culled podcast including Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Archetypes.
Daniel Ek discussed the company's motivation for the move in a rare public interview, four months after it was announced that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's podcast deal would not renewed.
Ek said: "We thought new innovation was needed to happen here.
"We thought we can come in and offer a great experience that both makes consumers very happy and allows new creators new avenues."
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's podcast has just 12 episodes that were released weekly from August to November 2022.
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He added during an interview with the BBC: "And the truth of the matter is some of it has worked, some of it hasn't.
"We're learning from those and we are moving on and we wish all of the ones we didn't renew with the best of success they can have going forward."
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were criticised by Spotify executive Bill Simmons as "f****** grifters" after it was announced that Archetypes had been scrapped.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's podcast has just 12 episodes that were released weekly from August to November 2022.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were criticised by Spotify executive Bill Simmons as "f****** grifters" after it was announced that Archetypes had been scrapped.
PA
In July, Spotify revealed it had taken a ÂŁ34million hit after culling failed podcast deals.
The streaming service revealed it had taken the hit as a result of "write-offs and contract termination" costs "in connection with rationalising our podcast content portfolio".
Ek said the company was "stepping out of some deals and relationships that haven’t worked out".
He added that in some cases: “We overpaid relative to what we should have done."
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Spotify's CEO has opened up on the reason the streaming giant culled podcasts including Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Archetypes.
BBC
Heavily investing in podcasts has failed to pay off for Spotify as a wave of job cuts were announced in June.
Spotify cut 200 jobs from its podcast business in its second round of redundancies this year, as the firm continues to recover from its huge investment into the sector failing to yield financial success.
The company announced it was making cuts equivalent to two per cent of its workforce as it reorganises the podcast side of its business.
It followed an announcement earlier this year it was reducing its headcount by around six per cent with around 600 jobs being axed.
The Swedish music giant invested more than ÂŁ800million building out its podcast business which currently has more than four million titles but that has eroded its gross margins.