So far, almost all popular Dutch podcasts can be listened to for free via platforms such as Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Productions were largely financed by advertisements. The Podimo app will be launched in the Netherlands in April. The purchase amount is unknown.
With the acquisition of Dag en Nacht, which employs approximately twenty people, Podimo will have access to a large number of popular Dutch podcasts, such as man man man† mr. big† The Willem podcast† Young investing† All history ever† Really happened† Reliable sources† The red lantern† murder cast† A podcast about media and The University of the Netherlands†
Some of it will remain available for free on platforms such as Spotify after the acquisition. Which podcasts will come exclusively to Podimo will be announced in the course of April. Day and Night let the makers determine whether their podcast is included.
‘I thought the makers would be afraid that they would lose part of their audience’, says Tim de Gier (38), who founded Dag en Nacht together with Anne Janssens (39) in 2015. “But they realize that listeners are quite willing to pay.” De Gier refers to the popularity of Vriend van de show, a company he also set up with Anne Janssens. In addition, listeners can financially support a podcast in exchange for exclusive episodes and other extras.
Listeners will also have to subscribe to Podimo for a number of Tonny Media podcasts. The company of Titus van Dijk, Jaap Reesema and Sander Schimmelpenninck, which includes the Self podcast† Marc-Marie and Aaf find something and Gueuze & Gorgels produces, previously entered into a partnership with Podimo.
Some podcasts are not suitable for advertisements, says De Gier. Narrative podcasts are so expensive that you need a huge audience to recoup them. And a broccoli brand often does not want to associate its name with a true crimepodcast.’ For those genres, a subscription model like Podimo’s is a godsend. In contrast, with podcasts about sports and technology, advertisers queue up.
‘The Dutch podcast market is starting to mature’, says Lieven Heeremans (31), founder of the Podcast Network Foundation, which is committed to Dutch makers. ‘The number of listeners has grown in recent years and now the producers are also starting to develop.’
According to Heeremans, the Dutch offer is expanding. ‘Soon makers will not only be able to report an idea to the public broadcaster, but also to Podimo. The question remains to what extent Podimo will be willing to invest in expensive narrative podcasts.’
Founded in 2019, Podimo calls itself the largest podcast subscription service in Europe. The Danish company has 160 employees in Copenhagen, Berlin, Barcelona, Madrid, Amsterdam, Mexico City, Oslo and Vilnius. During a recent investment round, it raised 80 million euros. With that amount it can make its own podcast, so-called Podimo Originals, en take over companies such as Dag en Nacht Media.