When Netflix unveiled its first wave of video podcasts, the lineup reflected a wide cross-section of the creator economy, from sports analysts and true-crime junkies to radio hosts and other cultural commentators.
Conspicuously scarce, however, were comedians.
Sure, there have been a few notable exceptions, such as Chelsea Handler (with Dear Chelsea) and the Workaholics trio of Adam Devine, Anders Holm and Blake Anderson (with This Is Important) — both coming through a deal with iHeartMedia — while Netflix’s first commissioned original was The Pete Davidson Show.
Still, given Netflix’s outsized role in today’s comedy business — with the third edition of its enormous comedy festival, Netflix Is a Joke, coming up in May — many expected to see more comic-driven podcasts bound for the service by now. Some sources have attributed the lack thereof to the way the streamer is structuring its deals as a licensee.
Rather than relying on its original series alone, Netflix is looking to licensing as a means of more quickly scaling its efforts in the podcast business. The streamer doesn’t have an official podcast boss; its deals are run through the teams of Lauren Smith, VP of Content Licensing and Programming Strategy, and VP of Nonfiction Series & Sports, Brandon Riegg.
While some of the pods Netflix has licensed have continued to remain accessible in their video form on Spotify, all have been required to strip their feed of new video episodes from YouTube.
This stands in contrast with Hulu’s strategy; the Disney-owned streamer’s first licensed show out of the gate is We’re Here to Help, the comedy advice podcast from Jake Johnson and Gareth Reynolds, which is being windowed with episodes premiering on the service before launching on YouTube the next day.
Sources close to Netflix emphasized that audio feeds for every podcast Netflix is licensing remain widely available across platforms. So what’s the big deal in claiming exclusive video rights?
What seems to be missing on Netflix’s part is an acknowledgement that for many podcasters today — and particularly in comedy — the visual element is far from ancillary. Shows like Stavvy’s World (from Stavros Halkias), Bad Friends (from Andrew Santino & Bobby Lee), and Take Your Shoes Off (from Rick Glassman) embody the way things work now, with standing sets, reaction shots, and viral clips transforming these experiences into the equivalent of low-cost talk shows.
(Earlier this week, Apple announced the addition of video to its own podcast app, underscoring the currently popularity of this form of content consumption.)
A Quick Education
Multiple sources we spoke with suggested that Netflix hasn’t been able to scale its podcast library at the pace some in the industry anticipated, after getting what one called “a very quick education” on this and other matters.
“We’re talking to licensing teams that are used to going to a Sony or a Warner Bros. or some entity that owns a catalog of content,” one agent said. “I think their first expectation was to do the same thing. We’re going to go to The Ringer and iHeart and SiriusXM, and we’re just going to be able to get a slate of content.”
Indeed, this is exactly what Netflix did — first with The Ringer/Spotify, then with iHeartMedia, and then with Barstool Sports — but the agent noted that “any talent that has been in this space for a while or that has good representation likely has more control over their distribution than the network.”
The source added that the “price to engage” with comedic podcast talent has been “a lot higher” than he believes the streamer expected. “I don’t think they realized just how much money some of these talents are making when they are majority participants in ad-supported revenue.”
Sources close to Netflix disputed the idea that the company is behind schedule, when it comes to its plans for podcasts. The rollout is unfolding as planned, they said, with the streamer deliberately launching across a mix of categories — including sports, true crime, general entertainment and comedy — while assessing what resonates most with its members. The current phase, they explained, is about learning and calibrating rather than rushing to scale.
Those in the know also acknowledged that determining valuation in the podcast space is an evolving exercise. Netflix, they said, is still assessing how individual shows translate as a value add inside a subscription ecosystem. Describing podcasting as a long-tail business, in which a relatively small percentage of shows drive the majority of engagement, they emphasized that comedy is merely one component of a broader strategy at Netflix — far from the company’s sole focus in podcasting.
The Engine Comedians Built
Against this backdrop, it’s little surprise that comedians remain protective of what they’ve built.
Over time, stand-ups have become some of the most powerful figures in podcasting — take Joe Rogan, Marc Maron, and Theo Von as just a few examples. In turn, podcasts have become one of the most powerful tools in a stand-up’s arsenal, not just creatively, but economically. Whereas specials drop only once every year or two, podcasts have offered stand-ups an always-on relationship with fans, supercharging their ability to cultivate audiences and scale their touring businesses. As the format evolved from audio-first to video-native, YouTube became the dominant growth engine, allowing comedians to go direct to fans and own those relationships outright.
Now that services like Netflix want that engine for themselves, the question becomes whether podcasts can be as beneficial to comedic talent behind a paywall as they are in the open ecosystem of YouTube — or whether such migration risks shifting power away from creators.
It’s clear why Netflix is pushing into podcasts. Released weekly, as opposed to annually or over the span of a couple of months, they’re a powerful weapon in the fight against churn. Much like comedy specials and reality TV series, podcasts can overperform relative to budget, delivering meaningful engagement at a fraction of the cost of scripted series. They also align with Netflix’s broader push toward content that consumers will keep on in the background — programming that competes not just with other streamers, but with social media and, yes, YouTube.
As one rep put it, “Traditional companies are starting to ‘rent’ viewership on their platform” as licensees and are reaping the rewards of the fan bases others have cultivated.
Podcasts’ appeal as acquisition targets reflects their evolution from radio offshoots to fully produced video properties. Alan Abdine, who is Head of Ad Revenue and Partnerships at YMH Studios, the company founded by comedians Tom Segura and Christina Pazsitzky, told Deadline that as podcasters have come to lean on video to more easily monetize their content, the production value of their shows has elevated to the point that they’ve become virtually indistinguishable from a professionally produced television product.
Abdine said that shift has prompted a reconceptualization of “what a podcast is, and is capable of being,” as streamers have come to recognize them as “an obvious extension” of what they’re already making.
YMH Studios is behind podcasts such as Your Mom’s House, hosted by Segura and Pazsitzky, and 2 Bears, 1 Cave, with Segura and Bert Kreischer. Additionally, they’re responsible for comedy specials from Segura and Pazsitzky that have landed at Netflix, alongside Segura’s Emmy-nominated series Bad Thoughts.
Pros & Potential Pitfalls of the Streamer Deal
Abdine said there’s an “aspirational aspect” to having one’s show as part of a curated lineup on a Netflix or Hulu, and indeed, every source we spoke to indicated that there are plenty of potential upsides for comedic talent in taking their podcasts to these platforms — the money, to start, and a chance to expand one’s audience.
“In an ideal world,” one manager said, “you’re baking these comedians into the streamer ecosystems, and then you have more opportunities.”
There may also be a competitive advantage. On YouTube, podcasts compete with an endless feed of content; on a streamer, the field of podcasts is narrower.
For newer comics who have not yet invested heavily in YouTube — or companies like Barstool Sports, which struck a multi-year deal with Netflix in December — licensing deals like Netflix’s may be particularly attractive. Sources said they might also appeal to someone eager to break into traditional media, and that having a show commissioned by Netflix — which assumes some of the legwork necessary to make a show successful — has its own appeal.
Still, for established podcast talent with roots on YouTube, the idea of taking their shows off platform can be “a really tough pill to swallow,” according to one rep.
As Abdine put it, “A very important core truth of podcasting is you meet your audience where they live.”
As a class of talent, another executive said, comedians gave often defined themselves by their willingness “to defer upside, delay, gratification in order to build their own audience relationships.”
Many podcasters have spent years patiently building their audience on YouTube with no outside support, with a lot of thought and effort going into crafting shows that become a habit for fans.
With this in mind, Abdine said, “regardless of how many millions of dollars you’re being offered,” he would never advise talent to take “a new captive audience… at the expense of alienating the core audience that got you to where you are now.”
This risks creating an “adversarial” and “problematic” relationship with one’s community, he explained, where “you’re basically telling your community, ‘You’ll watch it where I tell you to watch it,’ versus ‘We will meet you where you live.'”
Incentivizing fans to adjust their behavior as viewers by cultivating a better viewer experience on a new service is one thing, Abdine said. Forcing consumers’ hand is another.
Sources close to Netflix pushed back on the notion that the YouTube factor alone has derailed negotiations, noting that deals can fall apart for any number of reasons. As with traditional film and television, deals are not one size fits all, and not every conversation results in an agreement.
The Financials & The Intangibles
Beyond the question of audience control, there are the financials to consider. At a premium streamer, talent may be offered a rich multi-year deal for their podcast, perhaps with a large upfront commitment. But they nonetheless risk capping their financial upside after becoming accustomed on YouTube to having endless ways of monetizing content.
“You can have your AdSense. You can have your host-read [ads]. You can have dynamic and programmatic [ads]. You can have product placements, you can have brand deals, you can have clips,” said one comedy industry vet. “You’re condensing all of that into one number for Netflix, which I think probably changes the dynamic.”
People familiar with Netflix’s strategy acknowledge that the streamer’s economics differ fundamentally from YouTube’s ad-driven model, such that direct comparisons of upside are complicated. But what sources are describing represents just one example of structural divide between Netflix and YouTube.
Per one rep, “There’s a lot of community building, a lot of intangibles that I don’t know are necessarily understood by a lot of more traditional media types. I think that has been the biggest pitfall in terms of getting transactions over the line.”
Perceived as by far the best platform for discoverability, YouTube befits what Mosaic Media podcast exec Elizabeth Baquet refers to as the “community-building medium” of podcasting, as it lends itself to cultivating a more tangible connection between comedians and their fans. The mere ability to comment on videos can be a major contributor to a podcast’s success, something that is lacking on premium streamers.
Many in the business are operating the understanding that podcast licensing is an experiment, for Netflix as for all streaming services, and that their way of approaching podcast deals may well evolve.
Those close to Netflix, however, push back on the notion that podcasting is a short-term trial. They describe it instead as a committed expansion of the company’s content mix, with programming decisions part of “an ongoing conversation” rather than a temporary test.
Whether an experiment or not, sources we spoke to are concerned about potential fallout should the service’s efforts in podcasting succeed. Could this, for example, lead to a drawback in spending elsewhere?
“If Netflix feels like they can get your audience every week from your podcast for a relatively low price, are they going to then be incentivized to get your special or these bigger projects from you?,” one exec wondered.
An agent representing audio stars agreed, saying these concerns are “top of mind.”
They added: “It’s something that we’re discussing internally in a very coordinated way because we are cognizant of the potential impact that it might have on other pieces of the business. And we don’t really want to continue to be in a race to the bottom.”
Those close to Netflix note that while top podcasts command loyal audiences, they serve a different consumption need from the platform’s biggest hits, either scripted or unscripted, and their scale remains materially different. This is to say that podcasts are understood as additive for the service rather than substitutive within the broader content mix. Spending across categories, sources said, is not “a zero-sum game.”
Beginning of the Boom
From the perspective of one source, a positive for talent contemplating moves in podcasting is that streaming deals for video podcasts are so new, there’s little business precedent, meaning that their reps have more ability to help steer companies toward scenarios “simpatico for both sides.”
This is just the start of the streamer-led podcast boom, with other top services expected to enter the space soon.
“There are absolutely conversations happening across the board,” one source said. “Whether certain distributors are ready to engage in a real way is a different question. But I think everyone is thinking about their version of tapping into this space.”
YMH Studios’ Abdine ultimately characterized streamers’ investment as an “exciting opportunity” for podcasters, whatever wrinkles there might be in assessing deals to start.
“It adds additional credibility to this type of content, that it’s being recognized for how it has evolved. It’s a positive evolution,” he said.
At the same time, Abdine argued, “Let’s give people the opportunity to consume our podcasts on Netflix, while at the same time not alienating our core audience that made us relevant and big enough for Netflix to want us in the first place. Let’s come up with a solution that is inclusive.”
Whether Netflix’s or Hulu’s strategy in podcasting, or another entirely ultimately wins out, the hope is that such moves will be good for comedians. “I would hope that this is additive to the overall streamer marketplace and not an opportunity to pinch pennies,” one manager said. “Because so many comedians have been pinching pennies to build these podcasts for so long.”
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