According to The Hollywood Reporter, Tubi has reached a deal with Sirius XM in order to stream Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, Rotten Mango, and What Now? with Trevor Noah. More podcasts are reportedly part of the deal but have yet to be announced.
The deal is non-exclusive. The podcasts will retain the right to stream on other platforms such as YouTube. Previous deals in the industry, such as those made by Spotify, Netflix, and iHeartMedia, have required exclusive streaming rights. The Tubi deal will expand the audience for some of the country’s biggest podcasts. Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend and Rotten Mango both currently reside in Edison Research’s top 20 podcasts in the US. The properties acquired in the new deal are set to begin streaming later this month.
Tubi has recently ramped up its podcast efforts. According to Deadline, they acquired Red Seat Ventures, a talent management company that reps commentators such as Tucker Carlson. Addtionally, they purchased the true crime podcast Crime Junkie hosted by Ashley Flowers (The Deck, Park Predators).
Andrew Moss, SVP of content strategy and development at Sirius XM, spoke on the deal, “In podcasting, audio has long thrived through broad distribution across platforms, helping shows grow and connect with new audiences wherever people choose to listen. “We’re applying that same philosophy to video — expanding our creators’ reach across phones, computers, and connected TVs so their shows can be discovered by more fans in more places. Bringing our content to Tubi is another step in helping creators grow their audiences and businesses as video podcast viewing continues to expand,” via The Hollywood Reporter.
From the other side of the deal, Rich Bloom, general manager, creator programs and executive vice president, business development at Tubi, said, “Tubi is a platform built to help creators grow their fanbases and revenue, and this partnership with SiriusXM is a natural extension of that. By bringing some of the most compelling voices in podcasting to Tubi, we’re giving creators a powerful new avenue to expand their reach and connect with viewers who are hungry for these stories. We’re committed to being the platform where creators scale — and we’re just getting started,” via The Hollywood Reporter.