Spotify Strikes New Partnership to Expand "The Joe Rogan Experience" Podcast

Audio-streaming giant Spotify Technology has announced a new multi-year partnership with popular podcaster Joe Rogan. The deal will broaden the distribution of Rogan's highly acclaimed podcast, "The Joe Rogan Experience," to major platforms including Apple, Amazon, and YouTube.

This collaboration comes after an exclusive partnership between Spotify and Rogan that was established in 2020. According to Spotify, this move aligns with their broad distribution strategy that was initiated in 2023.

While the Wall Street Journal estimates the deal to be worth up to $250 million over the agreed period, Spotify has not confirmed this figure. The streaming platform will oversee the podcast's ad sales and has entered into a revenue-sharing agreement based on ad-driven earnings.

Spotify's shares experienced a 1.1% increase on Friday following the announcement of this deal.

This partnership is a significant step for Spotify, which has been grappling with profitability issues and facing criticism from numerous musicians who argue that the platform's streaming payouts are insufficient to support their work. Therefore, in an effort to address these concerns, Spotify has been renegotiating deals to reduce minimum guarantees, expand distribution, and introduce revenue-sharing models.

"The Joe Rogan Experience," initially launched in 2009, has achieved immense popularity over the years. However, it has also faced backlash for controversial remarks made by the host in the past—remarks for which Rogan has since apologized. Additionally, critics claim that the podcast spreads misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines.

Despite these controversies, Spotify recognizes the tremendous growth of podcasts in general and acknowledges that "The Joe Rogan Experience" contributed significantly to this trend. Since becoming exclusive to Spotify, overall podcast consumption on the platform has surged by a remarkable 232%. This surge has attracted a diverse range of advertisers, resulting in an 80% increase in revenue since 2021 and a staggering 45% increase in revenue for the show in 2023 alone.

Spotify's new partnership with Joe Rogan marks an exciting development for podcast enthusiasts and further solidifies the platform's position as a major player in the audio-streaming industry.