Today Apple announced paid podcast subscriptions. Most people following the podcast ecosystem thought Apple would have done this 5+ years ago. Meanwhile, in the more open ecosystem that is podcasting outside of a small number of companies, Podcast Index is making steady progress with Lightning Network based payments for podcasts.

While Apple’s paid podcast subscriptions are rather tame given that Patreon has been offering podcasters this option for quite some time, Podcast Index’s use of Lightning Network based payments are truly innovative. Beyond using the Bitcoin backed payment system, Podcast Index payments allow podcast listeners to send payments as they listen, on a timed basis (e.g. every 5 minutes) or on-demand. This allows podcast listeners to provide feedback in the way of payments. Did the podcast listener really enjoy that last segment of a podcast? Boost “the sats” (Satoshis, which are the smallest measurement of a Bitcoin) and let the podcaster know how much they appreciated that part of the podcast. While I have my concerns about the viability of Lightning as a payment network, I think the innovation the Podcast Index community is doing in regards to podcast payments is promising and far more creative than what Apple is providing podcasting.