Audible takes charge of Wondery podcast shows
Amazon.com is restructuring the Wondery podcast studio by shifting its award-winning narrative podcasts such as Business Wars to Audible and consolidating creator-led shows into a new unit, according to a memo seen by Reuters.
About 110 employees will be laid off as part of the process and many will transition to other parts of Amazon, the company said in an emailed statement on Monday.
Make sense of the latest ESG trends affecting companies and governments with the
Wondery CEO Jen Sargent will also depart the company following a transition period, the memo said.
Intense competition, high costs and a growing preference for creator-led video content have prompted audio streaming companies including Spotify to diversify their podcasts to attract more users.
"As video podcasting has grown in popularity, we have learned that creator-led, video-integrated shows have different audience needs and require distinct discovery, growth and monetisation strategies compared to audio-first, narrative series," Steve Boom, vice president of audio, Twitch and games at Amazon, wrote in the memo.
Wondery was acquired by Amazon in 2021 and has seen podcast revenue quadruple since then as the studio expanded its slate to include video podcasts and creator-driven series, according to the memo.
"This isn't just about layoffs — it's the collapse of a podcast strategy that couldn't keep pace with video-led rival platforms like YouTube and Spotify," said eMarketer analyst Grace Harmon.
Under the new structure, Wondery's narrative podcast studio — home to shows such as Dr. Death and American Scandal — along with the Wondery+ subscription service, will move to Audible, the e-commerce giant's audio platform.
Its creator-focused podcast team that produces shows including Mind the Game, New Heights, and Armchair Expert will join a new Creator Services group within Amazon's Talent Services division.
This new team will continue to operate the creator-focused podcast studio under the Wondery brand, and Amazon said the changes will help better support creators to monetize their content across multiple channels.
"Folding Wondery assets into Audible and focusing on 'creator services' could drive a pivot toward influencer-driven content that's easier to monetize," eMarketer's Harmon said.
In February, Amazon.com cut "a small number" of jobs at its Wondery podcast unit. Amazon purchased Wondery in 2020 for a reported USD300 million and last year signed a three-year USD100 million deal for rights to New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce, a podcast featuring the brothers of National Football League fame.
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