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Parcast

Type	Podcast network
Country	United States
First air date	2016 (2016)
Availability	International
Owner	Spotify
Established	2016
Official website	parcast.com

Parcast was a digital media firm and podcast network, that specialized in producing scripted podcasts and audio dramas. It was founded in 2016 by podcaster Max Cutler and his father Ron Cutler in Los Angeles California.

In 2019, it was acquired by Sweden-based media firm and streaming service provider Spotify. Spotify spent over $56 million to acquire Parcast; however, the total compensation has been reported to be over $100 million. This makes the Parcast acquisition one of the largest podcasting platform mergers in US history and largest single acquisition deal of Spotify's $400 million acquisition program. In September 2020, employees went public with their union drive at Parcast. A month later, Spotify voluntarily recognized the union. 15 months later, 56 workers of the bargaining unit ratified their first collective agreement, which included a minimum salary of $70,000, annual increases and affirmative action when hiring. On June 5, 2023, Spotify sent a memo to staff announcing that Parcast would be merged with Gimlet Media into a single Spotify Studios division, as part of a restructuring that also included the elimination of 200 jobs.

History

Cutler, a 27-year old graduate of the University of Arizona, launched Parcast in 2016. He was inspired by the hit podcast Serial, itself a spinoff of This American Life. He believed that his network could produce podcasts of comparable quality while saving money on the production of individual episodes.

Parcast's original focus was on producing scripted true crime series, but their scope expanded into the mystery, science fiction, and history genres as well as fictional audiodramas.

Parcast produced over 40 daily and weekly shows, supported by a team of more than 75 voice actors, producers, and scriptwriters. Following a decline in demand for the shows and the anticipated merger of Gimlet Media and Parcast into a single Spotify Studios subsidiary, the firm is expected to be disbanded sometime in 2023.

Audience

According to due diligence performed by Spotify, over 75% of Parcast's audience is female.

Series produced

See also

• List of podcasting companies

Citations used

1. "Spotify acquires true crime studio Parcast to expand its original podcast content". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
2. Leach, Kamaron (April 26, 2019). "Spotify's Podcast Bet With Parcast Sets the Stage for Earnings". Bloomberg. online. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
3. "Spotify Paid $100 Million For Parcast: Report". Insideradio.com. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
4. Massoudi, Arash; Nicolaou, Anna (2019-03-26). "Spotify to buy podcasting business Parcast for more than $100m". Financial Times. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
5. Sawers, Paul (April 29, 2019). "Spotify confirms it paid $56 million for Parcast, taking its total podcast acquisition value to $400 million". VentureBeat. Internet. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
6. Carman, Ashley (2020-09-02). "A third Spotify-owned podcast company is starting a union". The Verge. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
7. Kilkenny, Katie (2022-04-18). "Spotify's Parcast Union Members Vote Unanimously to Ratify First Contract". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
8. Weprin, Alex (2023-06-05). "Spotify to Slash Podcast Workforce, Combine Parcast and Gimlet Studios in New Round of Cuts". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-07-12.
9. Bromwich, Jonengel (April 4, 2018). "Pulp Nonfiction: Podcasts Go Mass-Market". The New York Times. online. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
10. ^ Coyne, Marley (June 4, 2018). "Parcast Founder Max Cutler On Creating Original Content". Forbes. online. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
11. "About Parcast". Parcast. Parcast. November 19, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
12. Robb, David. "WGA East-Represented Gimlet & Parcast Employees Blast Parent Company Spotify In Wake Of Layoffs". Deadline. Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
13. Pietsch, Bryan. "Spotify cuts 200 jobs, gutting Gimlet Media as podcast boom sputters". The Washington Post. The Washington Post. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
14. "5 Fast Facts about Spotify's Acquisition of Parcast". March 26, 2019. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
15. Loey Lane
16. Snitchery
17. "All". Parcast. Retrieved 2023-02-14.

External links

• Parcast

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Category

• 2019 mergers and acquisitions
• Podcasting companies
• American companies established in 2016
• Mass media companies established in 2016
• 2016 podcast debuts
• 2016 establishments in California
• Spotify acquisitions
• Companies based in Los Angeles
• American subsidiaries of foreign companies