It Was Just a Podcast. Now, It’s Kelce Land.

Just like radio stations of yore, podcasts have long supported themselves with commercial breaks and host-read advertisements. But last year, Amazon realized there could be another way.

In August, the company took a sledgehammer to its podcasting arm, Wondery. What emerged from the rubble was a new and somewhat mysterious department called Creator Services, devoted to video podcasts.

Over the last six months, its central proposition has become clear: What if, instead of selling advertisements on podcasts, Amazon helped build mini-worlds around the shows and sold those?

The idea wasn’t new to podcasting. Companies like SiriusXM and Dear Media had begun marketing more facets of their hosts’ lives and businesses: selling ads on their personal social media accounts, bankrolling and hawking tickets for live events, teaming up with sponsors on new products. Many top podcasters are already multihyphenate entrepreneurs. Alex Cooper of “Call Her Daddy” sells energy drinks and directs commercials for Google; the self-help author and podcaster Mel Robbins sells protein shots.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/24/business/media/jason-travis-kelce-amazon-podcast.html