Apple signs podcast deal that could inspire TV+ content

11 Aug 2022

Image: © Thomas Dutour/Stock.adobe.com

Futuro, the studio behind Pulitzer-winning podcast Suave, will reportedly get funding from Apple in exchange for the chance to turn podcasts into shows and films.

Apple appears to be investing in the media side of its business with a new podcast studio deal that will add more original content to Apple Podcasts and, potentially, Apple TV+.

The iPhone maker has struck a deal with Pulitzer-prize winning Futuro Studios, which will see Apple fund the development and production of podcasts, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

In exchange, Apple will reportedly get the first chance to turn any podcast into a film or TV show.

Futuro is a podcast studio that is part of the Futuro Media Group based in the US. It is behind the popular criminal justice podcast Suave, which won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize in audio reporting.

Other titles the studio is working on include Ídolo: The Ballad of Chalino Sánchez, La Brega, Anything for Selena, Norco 80 and Con Todo: Brown Love.

The Futuro podcast team is led by Peabody Award-winning journalist Marlon Bishop on the editorial end and popular commentator on US Latino issues Julio Ricardo Varela on the business end.

Apple has made similar arrangements with other studios and has spent up to $10m on the podcast push, sources revealed to Bloomberg. The tech giant already has podcasts lined up with At Will Media, Campside Media, Jigsaw Productions and Pineapple Street Studios.

Apple TV+, which first launched in late 2019, will reportedly lead the Futuro deal instead of the company’s podcast division.

Since its launch, the streaming service has seen successes with its Emmy-winning TV series Ted Lasso and The Morning Show as well as its Oscar-winning film set in the deaf community, CODA.

While Apple may not be pumping as much into podcasts as Spotify and Amazon, the new deal would mark an intention to grow the business – even if it is just for the benefit of Apple TV+.

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Vish Gain is a journalist with Silicon Republic

editorial@siliconrepublic.com