Spotify and Archewell Audio, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s podcast production company, have ended a business partnership after the couple only delivered a single series of podcasts.
“Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we’ve made together,” Spotify and Archewell Audio announced Thursday, without explaining why they decided to pull the plug.
The deal ends less than a year after Markle’s debut podcast, “Archetypes,” first aired. The segments dug into “the labels that try to hold women back,” according to their description on the platform, with Markle’s guests including Serena Williams, Mariah Carey and Mindy Kaling.
At the time, Dawn Ostroff, Spotify’s head of advertising and content business, called Prince Harry and Meghan “citizens of the world,” celebrating their goal of elevating underrepresented voices in their work.
After the partnership ended, Bill Simmons, Spotify’s head of innovation and podcast monetization, attacked the pair, calling them “scammers” in an episode of his podcast. His guest, podcast host Joe House, referred to Simmons’ negotiating and negotiating experience when Simmons turned to the news of Harry and Meghan’s break-up.
“I wish I had been involved in negotiating Meghan and Harry’s departure from Spotify,” said Simmons, best known as a former ESPN personality. “One night I got drunk and told the Zoom story I had with Harry trying to help him with a podcast idea. It’s one of my best stories.”
Simmons is also the founder of the sports and pop culture website and podcast network The Ringer, which was acquired by Spotify in 2020.
Spotify first announced what it called a exclusive “multi-year association”. with The Duke and Duchess of Sussex in December 2020 focused on producing podcasts and shows that share “uplifting and entertaining stories” with the streaming platform’s massive audience.
Harry and Meghan also have one multi-year agreement with Netflix to produce children’s programming, documentaries, feature films and scripted shows.
The couple stepped down from their royal duties in 2020, separating them from the British crown’s estimated $34 billion estate. Forbes last year pegged his net worth at $10 million, including Harry’s inheritance from his mother, Princess Diana, and the couple’s estate in their California mansion.
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