A couple of years ago, I penned an article on Medium called Your Hatred of Apple Podcasts Isn't Helping. Here’s one thing that hasn’t changed since that article was published nearly two years ago: Apple still controls 80% of the podcasting world. Many apps and directories pull from Apple Podcasts’ dataset. Some don’t have a way to manually submit to them, making Apple Podcasts the de facto keeper of (statistically speaking) all podcasts. So as my friend James Cridland says, if your show gets kicked out of Apple Podcasts, you’re effectively kicked out of almost everywhere else that matters.U.S. Presidential candidate Andrew Yang made the argument that sometimes services are the biggest because they're absolutely the best. To directly quote him: “There’s a reason why no one is using Bing today… Sorry, Microsoft. It’s true.”The argument of whether or not tech giants should be broken up or not aside, there’s a reason Google is the tool everyone uses, even though there are a lot of other search engines out there. If you set up your podcast for Apple, you’ve mostly done it right for everywhere else that matters. Mostly.Amazon has some pretty amazing superpowers. For example, Amazon can, with the near-literal push of a button, get an extra 50,000 sales of any ebook in a day. Most books never get close to 5,000 total sales for their entire life.With those thoughts in mind, think on Apple and the incredible power they wield over podcasting.But that doesn’t mean people should stop building competing podcast listening apps, podcast directories, and brand new podcasting services that give us something different (you could say better) than our Apple overlords.As for working podcasters, I can’t tell you what to do or what loyalties you should have. I can only suggest that you not do silly things like try to get your listeners to switch away from Apple Podcasts, or decide to not put a link to your show on Apple Podcasts on your website. That’s just short-sighted. And rather pointless.Speaking of pointless: I can’t think of the last time I used the raw RSS feed to subscribe to a show. And with few exceptions, I’m willing to bet you haven’t either. And we’re way more technically advanced than casual listeners. Of course, I could be wrong about that. Do you use the raw RSS feed to subscribe, or is that purely a hold-over from 2004 thinking, and I need to reset my assumptions? Go to Flick.group/podcastpontifications to chat privately on your mobile device with a small group of listeners to this program.Maybe we should be more like my publishing friends and seek out a tighter integration with podcasting’s powerhouses? I'll be exploring this theme for the rest of this week here on Podcast Pontifications.You’ll notice I don’t run ads on this show, but you can show your support for the program by going to BuyMeACoffee.com/EvoTerra and making a small contribution.And if you're in business and need some help with strategic podcasting, that's what my firm, Simpler Media, does. Get in touch with me. evo@PodcastLaunch.pro or go to PodcastLaunch.pro to see how we can work together.-----Share this with a friend: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/tilting-at-podcastings-apple-shaped-windmillPodcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.Mentioned in this episode:Support For Abortion RightsWhile Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th. Abortion is a basic healthcare need for the millions of people who can become pregnant. Everyone should have the freedom to decide what’s best for themselves and their families, including when it comes to ending a pregnancy. This decision has dire consequences for individual health and safety, and could have harsh repercussions for other landmark decisions. Restricting access to comprehensive reproductive care, including abortion, threatens the health and independence of all Americans. Even if you live in a state where abortion rights are upheld, access to safe medical procedures shouldn’t be determined by location, and it shouldn't be the privilege of a small few. You can help by donating to local abortion funds. To find out where to donate for each state, visit donations4abortion.com. If you or someone you know needs help, or if you want to get more involved, here are 5 resources: 1. ShoutYourAbortion.com is a campaign to normalize abortion. 2. DontBanEquality.com is a campaign for companies to take a stand against abortion restrictions. 3. Abortion.cafe has information about where to find clinics. 4. PlanCPills.org provides early at-home abortion pills that you can keep in your medicine cabinet. 5. Choice.CRD.co has a collection of these resources and more. We encourage you to speak up! And spread the word.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy