WASHINGTON — Automattic, the parent company of Tumblr and WordPress.com, will soon be acquiring the popular podcast app- Pocket Casts from a collective of public radio groups, including National Public Radio and British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Studios.
Co-founders Russell Ivanovic and Philip Simpson will remain in charge of the Pocket Casts team, as per a media report.
“As part of Automattic, Pocket Casts will continue to provide you with the features needed to enjoy your favorite podcasts (or find something new),” a WordPress.com blog post said.
“We will explore building deep integrations with WordPress.com and Pocket Casts, making it easier to distribute and listen to podcasts.”
Tech-savvy users must be aware of the advancement in the blogging experience this move will bring on. Both blogs and podcasts use the RSS feed for distribution, so integrating the two platforms is going to be a good move by the company, as per a media report.
“Whoa, Automattic bought Pocket Casts (a great podcast player). They’ve been scooping up great stuff the last few years—Tumblr, Day One, WooCommerce. They’re building a big ol’ Voltron of great writing, publishing, and consumption apps,” tech writer David Chartier tweeted.
In May 2018, Pocket Casts was bought by public media organizations like National Public Radio, WNYC Studios, WBEZ Chicago, and This American Life. BBC Studios was also one of the stakeholders in the platform prior to Automattic’s acquisition.
“Fab to see! Pocket Casts is one of the great Australian tech/audio success stories in recent years,” tweeted Andrew Davies, Digital and Engagement Editor, ABC Audio Studios/Radio National.
However, Automattic didn’t disclose how much it will pay to acquire Pocket Casts.
“Big news! Pocket Casts will be joining Automattic, the parent company of WordPress, making it easier for podcast fans to discover new content and customize their listening experience,” Automattic tweeted.
Earlier this year, Spotify-owned Anchor teamed up with WordPress.com to turn written material into podcasts via text-to-speech tech.
“Making a podcast out of your blog breathes new life into the work you’re already doing — you can make your unique blogging voice actually audible!” the company said in a blog.
“By converting your blog into a podcast, you’re leveraging the power of audio to grow your brand, audience, and income — without any extra work. A podcast version of your WordPress.com blog also introduces an entirely different audience to your work, and frees listeners up to do what readers aren’t able to: multitask!”
(With Inputs from ANI)
(Edited by Abinaya Vijayaraghavan and Praveen Pramod Tewari)
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