Joe Rogan has just changed the world of podcasting.
Joe Rogan signs exclusive licensing deal with Spotify worth $100 Million
In a major announcement on Tuesday, The Joe Rogan Experience podcast host revealed that he had signed an exclusive licensing deal with Spotify. This means that by the end of the year, Rogan will be pulling his podcast library off of all other platforms – including YouTube and iTunes.
Before episode #1476 – which featured a chat with comedian Patton Oswalt – Rogan told his audience that he had signed the deal with Spotify and then gave a few details about how things were going to change.
“Hello everybody, I have an announcement. The podcast is moving to Spotify. I signed a multi-year licensing agreement with Spotify that will start on September 1st,” said Rogan. “Starting on September 1st, the entire JRE library will be available on Spotify as well as all the other platforms. Then, somewhere around the end of the year, it will become exclusive to Spotify, including the video version of the podcast.”
Rogan added that the show will not change and he will not be an employee of Spotify. He explained they will continue to do the exact same show with the same crew, and the only difference will be that the podcast will only be available on the largest audio platform in the world.
Rogan’s YouTube channel will remain live, but it will no longer feature full episodes. Fans will not have to pay for the podcast, but they will have to become Spotify users to watch and/or listen. The company will be selling ads against Rogan’s content, which he said last year gets more than 190 million downloads each month.
The former Newsradio star hosts the number one podcast in the world, which he began more than a decade ago. Up until now, The Joe Rogan Experience has not been available on Spotify.
This new deal will be a huge hit for YouTube, as Rogan’s channel that features full podcast episodes is one of the most-viewed channels on the platform. Each of his videos gets millions of views, but all of that will be leaving for Spotify’s new video podcasting feature. There is a possibility, though, that they will continue to post clips from the podcast on YouTube in an effort to drive viewers to Spotify.
Forbes magazine named Joe Rogan the highest-paid podcaster of 2019. Between his ad revenue, YouTube broadcasts, and live shows, the comedian earned $30 million last year. According to the Wall Street Journal, Rogan’s new deal with Spotify is worth $100 million.
