Apple launches big Podcasts update with redesigned interface and third-party integration

Apple has unveiled an upgrade to Apple Podcasts, which coincides with the iOS 17 release. The update includes a redesigned interface with full-screen artwork, improved queue management, episode artwork, interactive widgets, and search filters. It also supports the new iPhone's StandBy mode (cool 😎). Subscribers to Apple Music, Apple News+, Calm, and Lingokids, as well as partners, will have access to over 60 original podcasts, now available within the Apple Podcasts app.

The new update also includes a new API that allows third-party apps with subscriptions to integrate their premium content into Apple Podcasts, which encourages lot of sounds/podcasts focus apps to make their content available to a broader audience. Subscribers of these third-party apps can access the content on various Apple devices, including iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, HomePod, CarPlay, and Apple Watch with AirPods. Bloomberg, Curio, L’Équipe, Mamamia, Sleep Cycle, The Economist, The Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, WELT News, and Zen are among the early adopters of this feature.

Apple News+ Narrated, offering narrated audio news articles from Apple News+ publishers, is now accessible in both Apple Podcasts and Apple News. The update also plans for Apple Podcasts to feature coverage of the 2024 Apple Music Halftime Show and various anchor-hosted and artist-hosted programs. The update includes 42 shows from Apple Music and four from Apple News, offering a variety of content.