Paying for ad free podcasts
I've previously written about my search for videogame podcasts which was very successful with the mix of Post Games and Wavelengths. Since then, there has also been the very enjoyable (and just fun) Kurt & Lucy Gotcha Covered from Gamespot (I was a big fan of Kurt's YouTube series he used to do for Gamespot).
One thing though with podcasts in general - and the ones listed above are not egregious at all - is the amount of repetitive and annoying ads. I'm not against ads in podcasts by default, but some like Better Offline can be insufferable. This is why increasingly when there is an option to go ad free I'm more inclined to go that route. So far I've done so with Post Games, which not only is ad free but comes with bonus content in each episode, as well as other extras via Patreon. Plus, given what Chris Plante has gone through I'm happy to support him.
The other podcast - or rather podcasts - I've started to pay for are those from The Verge. Yes, they are fairly large organisation, but on the whole the journalists themselves there have the right mindset. I was on the fence about subscribing when the subscription model was first announced. I wasn't against it, but wasn't quite sure if I wanted to pay or not. Even with the many instances where I would click on an article and face the paywall. Sure, there were ways around it, but that friction was enough to put me off unless I was really interested. Plus, I tended to feel bad about doing so.
Recently The Verge - in addition to adding more newsletters to the subscription - started giving subscribers the option to listen to ad free versions of their podcasts. This also integrates easily into Pocket Casts (which thankfully reversed their banner ads for long term users). Considering I listen to these pretty much every week this was the final push needed for me. That and a helpful additional 10% off for the first year. Which for me brought the price down to just over £30 for a whole year. Given how much I listen to and read from there, this seemed like a pretty good deal.
I'm not here to say that everyone should load up on podcast and news subscriptions. We'd all go broke soon enough, but the ad model is falling apart. The ad model for podcasts has mostly been poor, and on websites dreadful. If there was a way I could pay a flat fee per month that applied evenly to a selection of creators that I chose, that would be great, but for now I've got a select few I support.
One thing though with podcasts in general - and the ones listed above are not egregious at all - is the amount of repetitive and annoying ads. I'm not against ads in podcasts by default, but some like Better Offline can be insufferable. This is why increasingly when there is an option to go ad free I'm more inclined to go that route. So far I've done so with Post Games, which not only is ad free but comes with bonus content in each episode, as well as other extras via Patreon. Plus, given what Chris Plante has gone through I'm happy to support him.
The other podcast - or rather podcasts - I've started to pay for are those from The Verge. Yes, they are fairly large organisation, but on the whole the journalists themselves there have the right mindset. I was on the fence about subscribing when the subscription model was first announced. I wasn't against it, but wasn't quite sure if I wanted to pay or not. Even with the many instances where I would click on an article and face the paywall. Sure, there were ways around it, but that friction was enough to put me off unless I was really interested. Plus, I tended to feel bad about doing so.
Recently The Verge - in addition to adding more newsletters to the subscription - started giving subscribers the option to listen to ad free versions of their podcasts. This also integrates easily into Pocket Casts (which thankfully reversed their banner ads for long term users). Considering I listen to these pretty much every week this was the final push needed for me. That and a helpful additional 10% off for the first year. Which for me brought the price down to just over £30 for a whole year. Given how much I listen to and read from there, this seemed like a pretty good deal.
I'm not here to say that everyone should load up on podcast and news subscriptions. We'd all go broke soon enough, but the ad model is falling apart. The ad model for podcasts has mostly been poor, and on websites dreadful. If there was a way I could pay a flat fee per month that applied evenly to a selection of creators that I chose, that would be great, but for now I've got a select few I support.