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And Finally Business News Deals Media
Sony Music expands podcasting operations through Somethin Else acquisition
By Chris Cooke | Published on Thursday 17 June 2021
Sony Music has expanded its podcasting partnership with UK-based audio production company Somethin Else by, well, buying UK-based audio production company Somethin Else. Well, that’s one way of doing it.
Anyway, although Somethin Else also makes traditional radio shows and has teams working on telly and social media projects too, for Sony this deal is really all about the bloody podcasts. Because we all love podcasts, right? All hail the podcasts. I’m going to listen to a podcast right now. Actually, that might be distracting. And I wouldn’t want to fuck up cutting and pasting in some quotes from a press release.
Actually, before the quotes, here’s some facts. Somethin Else’s CEO and Chief Content Officer – Jez Nelson and Steve Ackerman respectively – will now lead Sony’s global podcast content and business development strategy, both becoming EVP Co-Head Global Podcasts. Nelson will focus on UK operations, while Ackerman will oversee lots of podcast gubbins in New York.
Sony first announced a partnership with Somethin Else back in February 2020 as the major expanded its own podcast making operations. Since then the two companies have worked on a number of podcast projects together. I should probably namecheck some of them. George Ezra & Friends, that’s one. And (Staying) At Home With The Williamses, that’s another. There are more, but the point is, as a result of this deal those podcast projects are going to just keep on rolling.
“Expanding our relationship with Somethin Else brings their best-in-class capabilities and production expertise fully into the Sony Music family”, shouts Sony’s President of Global Digital Business, Dennis Kooker. “Our new global podcast division is key to our plans for a fast-paced expansion in the market, diversifying our creative abilities and providing a home for exciting content that will benefit millions of podcast-lovers around the world”.
Somethin Else will continue to make radio shows within the all new Sony audio production division, including all the programmes it produces for the BBC. The company’s telly and social media projects will become an extension of Sony Music UK’s 4th Floor Creative division.
“We’re delighted to be joining Sony Music at what feels like a critical moment in the growth and acceleration of the global podcast industry”, Ackerman and Nelson add, in perfect unison. “Somethin Else is known as the leading premium podcasting production company in the UK and our ambition is to harness that drive and creativity to make Sony Music a global market leader”.
“Sony Music is renowned for always putting the artists first in everything they do, and we’ve seen that culture fully embedded in their podcast offering too”, they go on. “That global expertise, artist first culture, and ability to cut through the noise has huge appeal to podcasting talent and we look forward to harnessing that in this new chapter of our business”.
As do we all, I’m sure. We make a podcast, you know. Did you know that? Sony doesn’t have anything to do with it, I should add. Basically, it’s something else. But not Somethin Else. Glad we got that cleared up. Why not give it a listen?
