2026 is seemingly going to be the year that Netflix gets aggressive with podcasting. We already knew that the streamer will video podcasts from Spotify Studios and The Ringer in the new year, and according to a new report, agents at leading talent agencies are being sounded out ahead of a Q1 push.
Sources have told that Netflix has sent “dozens of requests” to agents at WME, UTA and CAA as it looks to add more video podcasts to the platform. The plan is that the company launches its video podcast offering in early 2026, by which time it wants to have a library of shows with existing audiences.
This comes after reported this week that Netflix is also in licensing talks with iHeartMedia, which is one of the largest podcasts publishers in the world and makes shows like Stuff You Should Know and The Breakfast Club. According to Bloomberg’s sources, Netflix wants an exclusivity deal that would mean featured shows would no longer be uploaded to YouTube. The latter is Spotify’s biggest rival in the space, and passed monthly active podcast viewers at the start of 2025.
The Spotify deal Netflix penned last month includes nine sports podcasts at launch, among them The Bill Simmons Podcast and The Zach Lowe Show. Other video podcasts coming to the streaming service include Serial Killers and The Ringer’s The Rewatchables.
