Spotify Purchases Sports & Culture Site The Ringer; Following Expansion Into Podcasts

The company has purchased popular sports & culture site The Ringer.

Referring to Spotify as a streaming giant is more applicable now than ever; as the company continues to grow exponentially as each year passes by. With the recent release of their financials for 2019, Spotify’s user base has been reported to have grown to 124 million paid subscribers – in comparison to 2018’s tally of 96 million paid users. Ad-supported users stand at 153 million monthly users – adding up to 29% increase in revenue for the company in 2019, with a total revenue of $7.44 billion.

Following the release of this information, Spotify has announced that they have subsequently purchased the popular sports and culture site The Ringer. Spotify announced in 2019 that they are venturing into the podcast arena, having already purchased three podcast companies including Gimlet Media Inc. and Anchor. The Ringer boasts an impressive catalogue of 30 podcasts. Along with their podcast network – The Ringer has its own video network, film production division and book imprint along with publishing original articles daily.

Founder of The Ringer, Bill Simmons has commented regarding the purchase:

“We couldn’t be more excited to unlock Spotify’s power of scale and discovery, introduce The Ringer to a new global audience, and build the world’s flagship sports audio network.”

Regarding employees working for The Ringer who are not involved with anything audio related, according to The New York Times, the workers union said in a statement:

“We anticipate a productive relationship with new management for all Ringer staff members: podcasters, writers, editors, illustrators, fact checkers, copy editors, social media editors, and video and audio producers.”

Spotify are on a roll when it comes to expanding their territories; including the announcement in November 2019 of their very own awards ceremony – set to take place on the 5th of March in Mexico City.

Feature Image: Jaap Arriens / NurPhoto via Getty Images