Apple is making a minor change to its Apple Podcasts app with iOS 14.5, ditching the “Subscribe” label to one that says “Follow.”
This change reflects language used commonly on social media platforms. Moreover, “Follow” suggests that the podcast is free, while “Subscribe” implies a paid subscription. Especially as Apple moves increasingly into paid subscriptions, this wording alteration is intended to avoid confusion.
Apple TV+ is launching a podcast dedicated to For All Mankind, the streaming service’s alternate-history show about the space race. The podcast will serve as a platform for real astronauts and scientists to discuss space travel with the series’ cast and creators.
The first episode of the podcast debuts Friday, the same day season two of the sci-fi series arrives.
A new Spotlight feature in Apple’s Podcasts app will promote “singular voices in podcasting” to help new listeners discover them. Apple plans to profile a new creator each month. The first is Celebrity Book Club podcaster, comedian and filmmaker Chelsea Devantez.
Apple is reportedly considering a for-pay podcast subscription service. It would join other Apple services offering premium content, like Apple TV+ and News+.
The news sent shares of rival Spotify down over 7% on Friday.
With the year winding down, Apple picked its favorite podcasts, books and audiobooks of 2020. The offerings “kept us entertained, made us think, provided a much-needed escape, or filled our hearts up,“ noted Apple.
All the recommendations are, of course, available through Apple Podcasts or Apple Books.
Oprah Winfrey’s famous book club is now an Apple podcast. The show, which launched Tuesday, bears a predictable name: Oprah’s Book Club. And the subject matter might sound familiar, too.
The eight-episode series features Winfrey talking with Isabel Wilkerson, author of Caste: The Origins of our Discontents. Winfrey called it essential reading when announcing it as her book club pick last month.
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Apple is reportedly buying exclusive rights to podcasts that could someday become movies or shows on Apple TV+.
Turning podcasts into television programs is becoming increasingly common. A popular podcast starring Will Ferrell and Paul Rudd is being made into into a Apple TV+ show, for example.
Apple is making it easier for Podcasts users to discover new shows focused on the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The app’s new “Coronavirus: Stay Informed” section highlights content from the likes of CNN, NPR, BBC and ABC News.
Amazon has added support for Apple Podcasts on Amazon Echo devices, enabling users to stream more than 800,000 shows.
Users can link their Apple ID to the Alexa app, giving them the ability to not only play, but pause and resume podcasts where they left off.
Apple’s growing services business will soon feature original podcasts, according to a report that, if true, amps up the tech giant’s battle with rival Spotify.
Apple’s pursuit of original podcast content came to light via a news bulletin from a Bloomberg terminal. Even before the full story published, the news sent Spotify’s stock on a fall of more than 2 percent.
Apple’s plan to ditch iTunes starts this fall with the release of macOS Catalina, which will offer standalone apps for Music, Podcasts, and TV.
WWDC offered a brief glimpse at how other things — like syncing iOS devices — would work after the update. Now Apple has published a new support document that explains everything for those who are still confused.
The document promises that “all of your favorite iTunes features” will still be available in Catalina. And it tells you where they will be.
