Netflix snaps up podcasts in TV turf war with YouTube

In a quieter but no less significant move than its $83bn bid for Warner Bros Discovery, the streamer last week moved into the spoken word as the first of three exclusive podcast deals came online. The battle for our ears has only just begun, writes Stephen Armstrong

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Netflix wants to grow its film production. That's evident from plans to change its $83bn bid to buy Warner Bros Discovery to an all-cash offer, luring shareholders to reject a hostile bid from Paramount. Lesser known is Netflix’s quiet bid to conquer the podcast world.

Last week Netflix began streaming podcasts from the Ringer Podcast Network, a Spotify-owned company headed up by sportswriter and critic Bill Simmons. It’s the first of three exclusive deals the company signed in December with podcast suppliers as the streamer takes on YouTube.

YouTube's 2.7bn monthly viewers vastly outnumber Netflix’s 300m-plus subscribers, but those subscribers’ fees and the streamers’ ad-funded tier means Netflix is projected to overtake YouTube in revenue for 2025: both companies’ earnings are forecast at $40-45bn.

A billion people watch podcasts on YouTube. But Netflix’s bid for HBO Max and Warner Bros, if successful, could lead to domination in premium content, as well as big name podcasters. CNN, which is owned by Warner, also inked a deal this week to bring several podcasts from Lemonada Media to its new streaming offer.

Over the next week, 16 podcasts from the Ringer will begin exclusive streaming, from sports to true crime. A similar deal with iHeartMedia starts soon, when 14 podcasts will move exclusively to the platform, including Dear Chelsea with Chelsea Handler. Three from Barstool Sports, a US-focused sports podcast company, will follow.