Facebook Going To Launch Its Own Podcast Platform Soon

The Facebook page will have sections of selected podcasts under a new podcast tab that has not yet been restored but announced by Facebook in April. The social media company has also issued rules and regulations for its podcasts that anyone can view.

The Verge reports that it has received emails from Facebook about the upcoming podcast feature, which is set to air on June 22nd. The social media giant allows podcast hosts to connect their RSS feed to Facebook, and the social platform automatically generates news posts for new podcast episodes. The episodes will be visible in the new Podcasts tab on a Facebook page launched in April when Facebook announced the introduction of a new podcast platform.

Earlier this month, a report by PodNews also revealed the launch date of Facebook's new podcast service. The social media giant, which confirmed The Verge's release date at the same time, said the new service will be available to certain publishers. However, PodNews reports that several podcast publishers have received emails suggesting they may have a wider distribution than previously planned.

Facebook has also published its general terms and conditions for posting podcasts on its platform, which all publishers agree to before they can post on the platform. The terms and conditions seem pretty standard, but they don't explain what the entire social media platform can do with podcasts posted on their platform.

The social media platform also gives podcast publishers the option of deciding whether to activate the clips. These clips, lasting up to a minute, are created and shared by listeners to “help increase visibility and engagement”. Similar features are available to Twitch users. In April, Facebook also announced Soundbites, which allows users to create short, shareable audio clips in the platform's news feed.

This move could be a strategy to compete with Spotify on the podcast. In November 2020, Spotify signed an agreement with Megaphone, a podcast publishing, and advertising platform. The music streaming service uses Megaphone resources to create specific ads and provide podcast publishers with their own ad monitoring tools.