Podcasts will appear on YouTube Music

YouTube Music will integrate audio and video podcasts. Could the American giant influence this already busy market?

YouTube Music enters the podcast market. YouTube already hosts video versions of many podcasts, with some reaching hundreds of thousands or even millions of views per episode. The audio service hasn’t yet taken on podcasts, but that’s about to change, as YouTube’s head of podcast Kai Chak recently announced during the Hot Pod Summit.

YouTube Music will integrate audio and video podcasts

“We will soon begin hosting audio and video podcasts on YouTube Music for users in the United States, making podcasts more searchable in other countries as well,” a spokesperson for the giant told Engadget. “It will make the podcasts users already love on YouTube available to listen to everywhere.”

Podcasting tools are also coming to YouTube Studio, and in a few months, creators will be able to add audio podcasts to YouTube via RSS feeds. “Podcast playlists will be eligible for current and future YouTube podcast features, such as entitlement to youtube.com/podcasts, the podcast icon, and being included in the YouTube Music app,” said the same spokesperson.

Could the American giant influence this already busy market?

The background podcast listener will be offered for free, according to TechCrunch. However, ads will appear unless you subscribe to YouTube Music. It would also appear that users would be able to switch between audio and video versions of episodes.

At least for now, YouTube doesn’t seem to want to follow in the footsteps of Spotify, Amazon, or Apple by offering exclusive and/or original podcasts. Time will tell if YouTube Music can take market share from Spotify and Apple, but by bringing audio and video podcasts together and tapping into YouTube’s huge audience, the American giant can definitely grab the attention of podcast music lovers.

YouTube is focused on bringing audio and video together for an audience.

Start watching a podcast at home, listen on the go (maybe finish watching at work).

— Alban ? New York at the Hot Pod Summit (@AlbanBrooke) February 23, 2023