SmartLess is leaving Amazon for $100 million

SiriusXM has inked a multiyear cope with SmartLess Media for unique rights across the flagship podcast hosted by Will Arnett, Jason Bateman, and Sean Hayes in addition to numerous different SmartLess exhibits. The three-year deal value the satellite tv for pc radio big a complete of $100 million, nameless sources informed Bloomberg, and brings the favored hosts into SiriusXM’s celebrity-packed roster, which incorporates Howard Stern, Kevin Hart, and Conan O’Brien.

This additionally signifies that the flagship SmartLess podcast and SmartLess Media will now not be underneath the wing of Amazon. In 2021, Amazon paid what Bloomberg reported was anyplace between $60 and $80 million for unique rights to SmartLess and any future exhibits developed by its podcast community. Beneath the deal, members of Amazon Music and Amazon-owned Wondery had entry to new episodes per week early, in addition to different unique content material.

SiriusXM members may also have early, ad-free entry to SmartLess, in addition to three different podcasts which might be a part of the SmartLess Media podcast community: Simply Jack & Jill, Unhealthy Dates, and Owned. SiriusXM additionally beneficial properties unique world advert gross sales rights to these podcasts. Identical to underneath the present cope with Amazon, new podcast episodes will later be launched extensively on all podcast gamers. However it seems that SmartLess followers will now not be capable to entry most older episodes free of charge on their participant of alternative; the entire catalogs of the 4 SmartLess podcasts will solely be obtainable on SiriusXM.

“The vast majority of the ‘SmartLess’ library can be obtainable solely to SiriusXM, making it the one vacation spot for followers to entry the podcast’s full catalog,” SiriusXM wrote in its announcement.

Podcast exclusivity offers have fallen out of favor over the previous couple of years, although they had been definitely common for some time. However locking a podcast to a single service or platform typically results in a drop in viewers. Corporations have since reversed course, typically choosing offers that safe perks like bonus or ad-free content material for his or her subscribers in lieu of whole exclusivity. Spotify final fall launched each the Spotify Unique What Now? with Trevor Noah and the second season of the fiction podcast Case 63 extensively. Though SiriusXM paid $150 million to amass Conan O’Brien’s podcast firm TeamCoco, podcasts like Conan O’Brien Wants a Buddy can be found extensively.

Within the case of SiriusXM and SmartLess, unique entry to its total podcast library is one further perk the satellite tv for pc radio big can provide its subscribers with out utterly limiting the present’s development. The SmartLess podcast steadily tops the podcast charts (it’s at the moment ranked #8 on Apple Podcasts and #27 on Spotify). Provided that new episodes will proceed to be launched extensively, SmartLess will nonetheless have entry to the identical viewers, although it’ll lose the performs from followers listening to older episodes on different gamers. And it might faucet into a distinct viewers at SiriusXM, particularly on the brand new app it debuted final fall with a purpose to court docket youthful listeners.