Amazon Music has launched a podcast offering in Australia, as the battle for listeners’ ears to intensifies.
As part of the new offering, local customers will be able to stream podcasts, including new original shows produced exclusively for Amazon Music at no extra cost.
Amazon Music will bring exclusive true crime podcast COLD to listeners, as well as series such as The Vaping Fix, Hamish & Andy, TED Talks Daily, and No Such Thing As a Fish.
“We’re thrilled to expand podcasts to customers in Australia, bringing our customers more forms of audio entertainment to enjoy with Amazon Music ,” says Amazon Music head of podcasts for EU and AUNZ Craig Strachan.
“With this launch, we’re offering customers a convenient podcast listening experience that fits their lifestyle. Our customers will also be able to utilise the voice functionality they know and love with music and Alexa, to now enjoy a superior podcast experience and uncover a brand - new selection of favourites.”
The announcement comes as Amazon released its State of Podcast report, which found that 50% of Australian podcast listeners prefer local podcasts, compared to just 26% who prefer non-Australian content.
The majority of Australia podcast listeners, 62%, listen to a podcast at least once a week, and almost 19% of podcast listeners are doing so on a daily basis.
The launch also marks the first time listeners will be able to access podcasts on Amazon Music using only their voice on any Alexa enabled device, including Echo speakers and smart displays, or via the Alexa app.
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