“Himalaya’s main investor is Ximalaya, China’s biggest spoken word audio platform. Other investors include General Atlantic and SIG. Himalaya has also struck content partnerships with the Dallas Mavericks, Starburns Industries and Studio71.”
Translation: a Chinese mega-company is throwing a ton of cash after cornering the western equivalent of the market they already own in China.
“News of Himalaya’s launch comes just as Spotify is doubling down on podcasts: Earlier on Wednesday, the streaming music service announced that it has acquired podcast studio Gimlet Media and podcast monetization startup Anchor.”
Translation: the arms race for podcasts and audio content in general is now truly begun, and the same people loading up on podcasts will be moving on breaking Amazon/Audible's audiobook monopoly, too. They want a bite of microtransactions that podcasters are funneling through other places that don't hide the numbers the way that megaplatforms do, too.
“The two companies appear closely linked, but Vincer was quick to declare independence when asked about the relationship between the two companies this week. “We have access to the expertise and resources of Ximalaya, but are lucky and thankful to operate with an independent vision and unique goals,” he said.”
Declaring you're not something you very plainly are on your face is a Trump tactic, and one that I intensely dislike.
Response from the Himalaya VP of Global Partnerships and Marketing quoted in the article.