App that offers clips of podcast shows accused of theft

• Podclips is one of a new set of podcast apps that offers clips of podcast shows as a form of curation. However, it appears today that it takes podcast audio without permission and re-hosts it on its servers, which denys podcasters stats and revenue; and, by clipping shows up, removes valuable context. “This is wholesale theft,” said Jason Calcanis, the host of This Week In Startups, adding “they refused to take our audio content down until I sent letters to their hosting company. You can link to our audio files, and if a fan makes a clip or two I’m generally ok with it, but to take entire shows without permission is insane.”

  • Our technical review of the site shows that audio from companies like NPR, Vox Media and others appears to play from m3.podclips.com; we’ve asked the company - which doesn’t give an address on their website - for clarification of their licensing agreements.

• Apple Podcasts has launched a new affiliate program for podcast subscriptions. The Apple Services Performance Partner Program now allows people to earn money by linking to (other peoples’) paid shows - you earn 50% of the first month’s subscription fee.

  • Almost inevitably, given the botched update to Apple Podcasts Connect, a number of podcasters told Podnews that the sign-up form for this new Apple affiliate program doesn’t work. It doesn’t work for us either.

• Spotify is about to get into audiobooks: kind of. The company has partnered with Storytel to allow existing Storytel subscribers to access their audiobooks within the Spotify app. It’s part of Spotify’s Open Access Platform.

  • Spotify has also added search filters to their app.

• Google Podcasts is to get a number of usability updates, according to 9to5Google, but no new features.

• Vurbl has launched an iOS app and has exited beta. The platform aims to help with discovery; it’s so far had $2.5m of funding.

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• Auphonic now supports Microsoft OneDrive for automated incoming and outgoing file transfers. Auphonic is a service that levels podcast audio and makes it easier to listen to.

• Triton Digital released the US Podcast Report, showing NPR as the #1 network. The company, owned by iHeartRadio, doesn’t measure iHeartRadio (yet). Earlier it released the Australian Podcast Report; ARN’s iHeartPodcast Network is the #1, though these numbers don’t measure the ABC which is thought to be bigger.

• Congratulations to Nick Quah, who, with Lede, has redesigned HotPod’s website, with a new logo and everything.

• People: Deezer has a new CEO, Jeronimo Folgueira. At premium podcast company Novel, Katherine Godfrey joins as Executive Producer for BBC commissioned content, and Willard Foxton is Head of Development.

• People we like: Fanny Klefelt, Creative Manager at Acast in Stockholm, Sweden. In this paywalled article, she lists five websites for “information and inspiration”, and Podnews is in her list, alongside The Economist. Tack så mycket, Fanny! Skål!

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