Streaming Services Are All Using Podcasts Differently

Netflix and Bill

Netflix has perhaps been the most aggressive streaming service to incorporate podcast content into its programming. It’s no wonder, considering that, among major on-demand subscription services, Netflix is the most expensive for top-tier ad-free plans at $22.99 to $26.99 per month.

Netflix added podcasts onto its platform in January through major partnership deals with Spotify and The Ringer, iHeartMedia and Barstool Sports. The January rollout brought popular video podcasts like “The Bill Simmons Podcast,” “The Breakfast Club” and “Pardon My Take” directly to the streaming service.

Since its initial batch of podcasts, Netflix has added Jake Shane’s “Therapuss” as well as original titles like “The Pete Davidson Show” and companion shows like the “Bridgerton Official Podcast.”

The streamer now carries more than 50 podcasts on its platform but has yet to release any data about its viewership. All of the podcasts are available to stream on other platforms like Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube, but some have exclusive video deals with the streamer.

Yet, podcasts were noticeably absent from Netflix’s Engagement Report for the first half of 2026 that the streamer released in July. The data dump does not include programming that reaches less than 50,000 views Shows that do not hit this benchmark are lumped into the “Other Shows” category.

All podcasts were lumped into the streamer’s “Other Shows” category, which accounted for 757 million hours viewed. All podcasts were categorized as “Other Shows” in the report, a Netflix insider told TheWrap, regardless of if they received more than 50,000 views or not.

“Approximately half of our viewing occurs in the evening, but our recently launched video podcasts over-index on viewing during the day and on mobile devices, an indicator that this engagement is incremental,” Netflix said in its shareholder letter, a trend they have previously noted in their first quarter earnings call.

According to Barrett Media, “Podcast partners gain no new transparency despite the platform’s rapid content buildout. Fewer disclosures could reignite concerns among producers about accountability.”

Co-CEO, President and Director of Netflix Ted Sarandos specifically called out podcasting as a bright spot in the company’s Quarter One performance. In the earnings call transcript, Sarandos said Netflix’s internal data shows video podcasts gaining engagement. Netflix video podcasts over-index in daytime viewing and mobile devices. This matters for Netflix, where professionally produced TV and film have historically comprised little mobile viewing.

Netflix recently announced that Jay Shetty’s On Purpose and true crime show Allegedly would come to the streamer. Podcasts featuring Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson, Lele Pons and Martha Stewart will also appear on the streamer soon through its partnership with iHeartMedia.

Much of Netflix’s overall business strategy appears to have one goal in mind: Stop the dominance of YouTube. According to Nielsen, YouTube captures 13.8% of total TV viewing, while Disney has 10.0%, NBCUniversal is at 8.4% and Netflix is currently at 8.0%.

The battle for total TV viewing turned into a Netflix/YouTube UFC cage match. For example, Bloomberg recently reported that YouTube is pressing top creators to keep their videos off Netflix, reportedly dangling millions of dollars to hold onto first-view exclusivity. Creators who post to both platforms may get less promotion and find themselves shut out of major brand campaign revenue. It is primarily a video and streaming fight, but one worth watching as the lines between podcasting, YouTube, and streaming keep blurring.

Samba TV’s VP, Measurement Science Alyson Sprague debuted the company’s first Netflix Podcast Ranker. As reported by Ashley Carman in her Soundbite newsletter, Samba’s data comes from chips in “tens of millions” of U.S. smart TVs, weighted against Census data. Carman notes Netflix CFO Spencer Neumann said video podcasts overindex on Netflix users’ mobile devices, beyond Samba’s data. According to Samba’s ranker, 13% of Netflix households watched a podcast in the first quarter of 2026. The Breakfast Club dominated the individual podcast ranker, accounting for 44% of Samba-tracked views. By comparison, second place goes to Bridgerton: The Official Podcast with 16% of total views.

According to Samba, The Breakfast Club alone accounted for over 40% of all Netflix podcast views in the first quarter.

What’s interesting about these initial Netflix podcast viewership numbers – or lack thereof – is that many research studies document that podcast listeners tend to be lite TV viewers. For example, in 2025, Signal Hill reported 35% of weekly podcast consumers do not subscribe to any pay TV, making them unreachable through traditional advertising. This has historically been a selling point for brands seeking incremental reach to their TV campaigns.

Hulu Likes Its Companions

Hulu, which is owned by Disney, has taken a different tactic with podcasts as part of its overall programming strategy. For Hulu, companion podcasts, which support their major shows, are a key component of their strategy.

In April, for example, Hulu announced the addition of four new podcasts – Handsome, The Mess Around, Prison Breaking, and That Was Us – to its growing library of licensed and companion podcasts. Following the recent debut of We’re Here to Help from Jake Johnson and Gareth Reynolds, this expansion brings extensive new and library episodes exclusive to Hulu, before they are available on other platforms.

“These podcasts have each built such a passionate fanbase, and we look forward to bringing them to an even broader audience on Hulu,” said Lauren Tempest, General Manager, Hulu & EVP, DTC Content Partnerships. “Podcasts have become a strategic part of our content offering and as the lineup continues to grow, we’ll stay creator first and focus on delivering buzzy shows that drive cultural conversation.”

These new licensed additions join a growing slate of companion podcasts tied to Disney+ and Hulu’s most popular series, including Dancing with the Stars, American Idol, Paradise, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Tell Me Lies, FX’s Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette, and Marvel Television’s Daredevil: Born Again.

The addition of Handsome, The Mess Around, and That Was Us builds on Hulu’s collaboration with podcast network Headgum and follows the successful launch of We’re Here to Help in February.

“Each of these shows has a special relationship with its audience, and we’re excited to help grow their fanbases even further with an incredible, talent-first collaborator like Hulu,” said Kaiti Moos, VP, Content at Headgum. “This next chapter allows us to expand, while staying true to existing fans and preserving the experience they love.”

The deal marks the first podcast licensing deal for Hulu, following the success of its Hulu and Disney+ companion video podcast slate that launched in the Fall 2025. The lineup includes Only Murders in the Building, Paradise, Dancing with the Stars, Percy Jackson and The Olympians and others. Under the agreement, Hulu has streaming rights to the podcasts’ existing catalog and all new episodes, bringing fan-favorite episodes to audiences worldwide.

Headgum, the comedy podcast network, announces a first of its kind licensing deal with Hulu for We’re Here to Help with Jake Johnson and Gareth Reynolds, which began streaming on Hulu in the winter, with twice a week releases. The new episodes will dropped exclusively on Hulu a day before they are available on the podcast’s relaunched YouTube channel.

In August, the Disney+ Hulu Throwbacks Podcast started streaming, hosted by Sherry Cola and Cierra Ramirez.

The podcast gave fans an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the movies and music that defined a generation, starting with High School Musical, The Cheetah Girls, and Camp Rock.

Episodes include Camp Rock, with Maria Canals-Barrera and Liamani Segura; The Cheetah Girls with Raven-Symoné; and High School Musical with Monique Coleman and KayCee Stroh

The podcast joins a variety of nostalgic programming like Hannah Montana, The Parent Trap, Glee, Cheaper by the Dozen, Full House, The Lizzie McGuire Movie, and more, all available in the Throwbacks Collection on Disney+.

HBO Max is employing a similar companion podcast strategy, using tentpole series like The Last of Us, The Pitt, and Bridgerton. as companion podcasts.

Just last week, HBO Max veered from that strategy by announcing that it would be streaming shows from Howard Stern’s Sirius XM radio show. What makes that announcement especially noteworthy, and a bit puzzling, is that reports and industry insiders indicate that Howard Stern’s audience and listenership have declined significantly over the years, contributing to speculation about his future and scale-backs on The Howard Stern Show.

For Disney, its video podcasts are used to support their major TV and film brands via companion podcasts. Research from Sounds Profitable shows that 16% of listeners have purchased a streaming subscription after hearing about a show on a podcast. Streaming platforms like Hulu and HBO Max(which uses a similar strategy), use companion audio and video content to stretch a single 50-minute episode into hours of weekly engagement. Moreover, fans want behind-the-scenes details, cast interviews, and breakdowns that extend the life of a television show or movie after the credits roll.

What Are The Others Doing?

Pocket Casts is a popular, feature-rich podcast player app and streaming platform used to find, subscribe to, manage, and listen to podcasts. It works smoothly across iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, web browsers, and smart devices like Apple Watch and Apple TV.

Pocket Casts recently launched a native app for Apple TV, bringing the podcast player to the big screen. Pocket Casts will automatically sync your Up Next queue, history, and playback position from your iPhone or other devices.

The Pocket Casts deal with Apple TV reinforces research that consumers of video podcasts use their smart TVs to watch their favorite shows. Currently, 46 percent of podcast viewers say that they watch on a smart TV — and often on 55-inch screens in their living rooms — according to a report published by podcast advisory firm Amplifi Media released this spring.

“People are going back to TV, back to video, and it’s sort of like podcasters are becoming the new late-night talk show hosts — except it’s not late night, you can watch them wherever and whenever,” said Sonoro chief content officer Camila Victoriano.

Tubi, which is now owned by the Fox Corporation, has thrown its hat in the ring through a new agreement between SiriusXM, a selection of video podcasts are now available to stream on the free ad-supported platform. The initial lineup includes Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, Rotten Mango, The School of Greatness, What Now? with Trevor Noah, and The Deep 3 Podcast, with additional titles expected to join the platform in the future.

In a press statement, Tubi said: “With a fandom-focused strategy in mind, Tubi has made a concerted effort for at least the past year to bring more creator content of different flavors (although has emphasized a commitment to long-form) to its platform. And to position it as place for diverse storytellers, social creators and those outside of traditional Hollywood avenues to find new audiences and extend their reach, while giving existing fans another place to watch.”

That strategy can be seen via Tubi’s recent deal with TikTok, among other creator-focused content efforts.

“For streamers, these deals enable them to add new content cheaply onto their service,” says Dale Crenshaw, a digital media specialist. “The podcast networks gain more visibility for their shows. We have to wonder if there are any more deals to come, say with Paramount Plus, Hallmark, and others.”

Dan Reich, Paramount’s EVP of streaming product, told employees that his goal is to “get more of the video podcasts” and “slice those up into segments for us to surface” in the streamer’s short-form feed, according to a recording of the call obtained by Business Insider. Paramount+ plans to slice long podcast episodes into vertical video clips. An algorithmic feed will let users scroll through these clips like on TikTok. The platform will pull highlights and clips directly from CBS Sports and CBS News. Executives view this large volume of live content as a competitive advantage over rivals. The company has held talks with external creators and networks—such as Jubilee Media, Paragon Collective, and various independent podcasters—to expand its distribution and content variety.

Don’t Forget About Audio

The mad rush to sign up video interview podcasts obscures the fact that, according to a Pew Research Center, that only 23% of all podcasts – video and audio — feature a host or hosts interviewing guests in every episode. Weekly podcast listeners spend 54% of their total listening time on narrative shows, according to data from Signal Hill Insights, compared to 46% spent on conversational chatcasts.

While narrative fiction and audio dramas account for a smaller overall percentage—typically estimated at under 10%—of all registered podcast feeds, these shows generate a loyal and passionate fanbase.

Data from ListenNotes cited by Command Your Brand shows that over 68% of newly launched podcasts fall into targeted, specialized categories. Downloads per episode for niche shows grew 41% faster than general-interest (AKA interview) podcasts. Creators of specialized content often build high-retention domains instead of competing directly with broad entertainment giants.

Michael Osborne, creator/host of Famous & Gravy, tries to maintain a balanced perspective on video podcasts on streaming services. “I’m a fan of many Ringer shows — Bill Simmons, Rewatchables, Plain English, The Town, Good Hang — and I’m also a Netflix subscriber, but I have never watched a Ringer podcast on any platform. Actually, I’ve never watched ANY podcast on any platform. I watch plenty of TV, movies, docs, and I even have a few You Tube creators I like. But my expectations for a podcast are always audio, and I may just be a dinosaur that way.”

In summary, there really is no accurate metric for video podcast adoption on TV streaming services, primarily because each streaming service seems to have a disparate reason for adding podcast content.

Dale Crenshaw, a digital media specialist, notes that, “Netflix’s expansion into video podcasts has largely fallen short of initial industry expectations. However, acquiring or licensing video podcast footage is significantly cheaper than producing high-end scripted series. Even with modest relative numbers, video podcasts provide an affordable way to drive total hours consumed on the platform. The strategy aims to capture loyal fanbases attached to prominent show hosts, even if growth is slower than anticipated.”

Crenshaw also points that, “It might simply be a case of Netflix and others such as Hulu and HBO Max having too much content for video podcasts to stand out. Or perhaps those audiences are happy to stick with the audio format rather than paying for yet another streaming service just to watch their favorite show.”

Of one thing we’re sure. The migration of video podcasts onto TV streaming services will continue. Of course, that migratory pattern raises more questions that it answers. What metrics can evaluate video podcast adoption on any streaming service? Will video podcasts supplant some TV programming simply because of the cost differential? How will video podcasts and audio podcasts coexist? Will TV streaming services find a feasible plan for migrating audio podcasts onto their platforms?