Spotify has long faced criticism while buying its way into having a larger slice of the podcasting pie. At all levels. But that criticism is reaching a crescendo and podcasters are taking action. Should you?

If you need a catchup on the Spotify-Neil Young-Joe Rogan spat, I recommend Podnews' excellent primmer before you continue. Also: As with any Podcast Pontifications episode, I'm giving you things to think about, not telling you what to think. Groovy? Groovy.

For The "I'm A Podcaster And I'm Very Angry About Spotify" campers: I hear and accept your anger. I'm right there with you. Spotify doesn't have a lot of grey areas to stand in when they pay Rogan's salary. But remember Spotify really is only in it for the money.

If you remove your show from Spotify's directory, will it financially matter to them?

Switch to a different host will have a financial impact on Spotify. Albeit a small one.

You can also ditch Spotify's monetization options, like premium subscriptions or their dynamic ad server. But can you? Or are you under contract?

If the podcast(s) you make are Spotify-exclusive, you have a lot more powerful levers to pull. But only if you can pull them without getting in legal hot water.

Before you take any action, take some time to think about the impact your actions will have on your listeners. Not everyone has the same strength as your convictions, and they may decide its easier to stop listening to you than to switch. 

But not every podcaster is pissed. Some even pro-Spotify camp. If either describes you, I'll repeat what I said earlier. I'm not telling you what to think. 

This situation is very fluid. It's evolving by the day (or faster), and I'm reticent to predict any sort of outcome or how this looks when the dust settles. If the dust settles. There are too many things in flux with lots of outside pressure. 

It's possible that all this is a precursor to something larger that becomes too much for Spotify to bear and they cut their losses. I'm not predicting that. I'm not saying it's likely. But it is a potentiality. And we should at least be aware of potential outcomes and prepared to act if we have to.

So do what you're going to do. My only request is that you do so with your eyes wide open. Choose wisely. 

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Links

• Getting more than 10K downloads per episode? Talk to Gumball.fm! 
•  Podnews has an excellent primmer on Spotify's Rogan problem
• Over 100K active podcasters trust Buzzsprout. 
• Serious about podcasting? Join the Advancing Podcasting Community today!

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Podcast Pontifications is a production of Simpler Media. New episodes are released four times a week, providing ideas and questions every serious podcaster should be thinking about.

It's created and hosted by Evo Terra. Follow him on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come. Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show.

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