New York (AFP)
Barack and Michelle Obama's production company, Higher Ground, has reached an agreement with Spotify that plans to produce podcasts for the online music platform that seeks to diversify.
"We are enthusiastic (...) because podcasts offer an extraordinary opportunity to encourage a constructive dialogue, to make people smile and reflect and, hopefully, to get closer to each other", commented former US president, quoted in a joint statement between Spotify and Higher Ground.
Also quoted in the statement, Michelle Obama stressed the "opportunity" of this partnership "to echo the voices that are too often ignored or silenced."
Spotify has been engaged since last year in the development of its podcast offer. In February, he bought the Gimlet Media Group for $ 230 million, one of the benchmarks for quality programs in the United States.
As the sector is structured, several major players seek to evolve podcasts from a model almost exclusively based on free and advertising revenues to a paid model.
The Luminary platform, which has already raised $ 100 million from investors, launched at the end of April with a subscription offer at $ 7.99 per month.
Tuesday is the French Majelan service that debuted with programs available in more than 50 countries and a premium subscription to 4.99 euros per month.
Created in 2018, Higher Ground had already concluded an agreement with Netflix for the production of films, series and documentaries exclusively on the online video platform.
? 2019 AFP