Facebook’s new failure: its podcast service has surprisingly disrupted

Almost a year after its launch, Facebook has ended its adventure in the world of podcasts. Meta, the service’s owner, has confirmed that they will stop allowing them to upload to their platform starting this week.

Meta has also ensured that all podcasts uploaded to its platforms will be completely removed by the coming June 3, according to the Bloomberg agency.

If there’s one option where Facebook thought to compete with Twitter’s “slots,” that is LiveAudio. These “live audios” allowed direct interaction between hosts, guests and listeners who wanted to enter these rooms.

This feature was originally launched in April 2021, and seems to be an attempt by the company to compete against Spotify and other alternative services.

In fact, just a year ago Meta announced several efforts and signed exclusive contracts with influencers to promote its podcast proposal. Now, the idea seems to have missed the profitability they expected, and the company has chosen to focus on other alternatives.

The surprising thing about changing course, beyond economic factors, is the decision taken by Facebook does not report podcast creators termination of service. In fact, the company left the task of getting this information to publishers.

The podcast industry has been growing rapidly in recent years. Companies want Spotify and Amazon Music managed to maximize the market. The first, thanks to its contracts with exclusive shows that have been successful, and also for some purchases of companies engaged in this sector. Meanwhile, the e-commerce platform bought the Wondery podcast network, as well as the hosting platform.

Meta will inevitably be attracted to this market. However, almost a year later they decided this was not the direction they wanted to take.

Zuckerberg’s obsession with not

In recent years, the ClubHouse audio platform has created a stir in the spread of audio content.

Thus, podcasts and audio rooms are gradually gaining their place in the digital world, as is the evolution of radio: pre-recorded or live content with everyday themes that also allows for more accurate horizontal communication (feedback between creator and listener).

For this reason, as happens with every new successful project that comes out on the internet, several platforms have decided to copy the work done by ClubHouse, Twitter with Twitter Spaces and Facebook with Live Audio or Soundbites.

In the case of the first, Spaces has been widely accepted by the public around the world, even creating options where Twitter creators can now monetize their content with this tool.