Spotify and Harry and Meghan’s production company end podcast deal
“Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we have produced together,” Spotify said in a statement sent Friday, without providing further details.
The deal between Spotify and Prince Harry and Meghan’s production company Archewell Audio was announced in late 2020 as an exclusive, multi-year partnership that would see Harry and Meghan host and produce “podcasts that build community through experiences and shared values”. It started with a 2020 holiday special, and a first full series was expected in 2021, Spotify announced at the time.
The couple’s first podcast series, “Archetypes,” which ended up launching in August 2022, has been described as “a podcast where we investigate, dissect and subvert the labels that try to hold women back.”
The first episode topped Spotify’s ranking lists, although the podcast was not among the platform’s list of its top podcasts of 2022. While the podcast series garnered significant media coverage, some commenters pointed out argue that the media was more interested in the revelations about Harry and Meghan. life while working in the royal family, than the interviews with the podcast’s distinguished guests.
The reason for the decision to end the partnership remains unclear, but it comes weeks after Spotify announced job cuts of 200 people, or 2% of its workforce, as the company outlined its ” strategic realignment” of his work and his global podcasts. .
The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the end of the deal, quoted people familiar with the matter as saying the couple failed to meet “the productivity benchmarks required to receive full payment for the deal. “, which he said was worth around $20 million.
A representative from WME, the talent agency that represents Markle, told the Wall Street Journal: “The team behind Archetypes remains proud of the podcast they created at Spotify. Meghan continues to develop more content for the archetypal audience on another platform.
Since stepping back from the royal family in 2020, the couple have signed a number of lucrative deals, including a six-hour documentary series they produced for Netflix called ‘Harry and Meghan’ and Harry’s controversial memoir “Spare”, which has been published. in January. Netflix described ‘Harry and Meghan’ as its most-watched debut documentary when it launched, while ‘Spare’ became an instant bestseller.
Other big names also signed – and later ended – exclusive deals with Spotify. Former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama announced a deal with Spotify in 2019, but ended their exclusive podcast deal in April 2022. Bloomberg reported that the couple were leaving the platform as they hoped to make their content available on more than one platform.
washingtonpost
