Interesting thought but while you can listen to the podcasts on the website you still need to use a normal player to actually subscribe to it. So it's more like a account-less netflix. I'd suggest putting subscribe links in for multiple podcast players (Apple, Google, Pocketcast, Overcast). I'll take this moment to plug my favorite iOS podcast player: Overcast [0]. Don't let the website throw you off, the app is where it's at and Marco just released Overcast 5 alongside iOS 12.
Hi Josh,
I will be adding a feature to login, save your favorite podcasts as well as start generating recommendations like Netflix / Amazon.
Mainly like people who like this also like this other podcast.
Also, there is RSS feed link if you go to the podcast page itself(RSS feed, URL, Ratings, Recommendations and episodes)
Let me know if you are not able to find it.
Are you only populating those specific categories because I noticed what seems to be an intentional ignoring of comedy podcasts. Almost none of the Apple's top comedy podcasts are available through search and it doesn't appear to be divided by network. For example, there are plenty of NPR podcasts listed but Wait Wait Don't Tell Me isn't on there.
It is fine if you are planning on sticking to the "HN topics" type niches of tech, business, management, etc., but I am not sure I would use the Netflix comparison if you aren't aiming for a general audience.
Some suggestions:
Would be useful to see the descriptions for each episodes.
The save feature you mentioned, as well as some basic history of which episodes I've already heard, would be great as well.
I currently use the Stitcher podcast app and my favorite features are the offline-downloads and the "play this next" button for queuing up episodes. I've payed for Stitcher premium once since I use the product daily, but did not find much value added from it - if you can find some ways to offer value beyond what the existing apps are doing, there is a market to be had, though you certainly have some tough competition from Apple, Google, Spotify & the other apps, so I wish you the best of luck!
A bunch of fake accounts upvoted the submission. I'll take your word for it that you didn't do this and mark my comment offtopic.
If you really weren't doing anything of that nature, then I'm sorry for suspecting you! Many people are trying to manipulate HN in this way, so we have to guard against it.
The 'flix' in Netflix refers to 'flicks', i.e. films.... that is clearly not the case here. Surely the name should have been something more like 'NetCasts'?
The reason why netflix became big so fast is not because of their suggestion service or categories but because they made accessible content that was otherwise not available to them at a reasonable price except from illegally obtaining it. I.e. The content versus the small monthly fee is the power.
Ratings are actually something Netflix has proven to be bad at. They even want(ed) to remove the stars system and replace it for thumbs up. In other words, suggestions, while nice, are not why it became so big.
In the podcasts land most content is free. The shows are usually already containing the category in their title or else in their tags. This means a simple search works very well in opening a series of podcasts in any category. To know if it's any good from your app would be great but again, even netflix sucks at this. Googling for reviews is still your best shot both for series as well as podcasts.
I cannot see yet what Podflix brings over using my Overcast app and simply using the search functionality. I'm already getting all the content I want in a single search and at a great price you cannot hope to beat: free.
So I guess my question is: what problem are you solving? I would have a good session thinking about this and than broadcast very clearly on your landing page what problem you solve that I have today. This can be a problem I don't even know I have right now. However, it is not availability of great podcasts at a great price. I already have that. Overcast also gives me playlist and downloading for a ride.
Hi Bastijn:
1) I think recommendation play a critical role in any customer-facing app. It's also powerful when we can start recommending episode instead of a podcast
2) The categories or topics are pretty strict on itunes. Have more subtopics will certainly make it lot easier to consume content.
3) I am also not planning on competing with any existing app. If possible I will even allow methods to subscribe using their favorite app.
I'm not denying that proper suggestions is a great service. I am questioning if it is enough to build a product around. Especially when people do not yet know they have an issue or are missing it. Netflix, Spotify, Apple music, they all share a common thing that made them great: give access to content not previously available for a fixed price. Your service doesn't. That doesn't mean there isn't a product here, it does mean you need to market your product completely different than "a netflix for podcasts". People probably feel they already can get all the podcasts they need for free so they do not easily see the value in a netflix for podcasts.
In any case I wish you all the best and hope you find good product market fit!
I think it's a bit cruel to compare multi-billion-dollar businesses with a lone guy doing his thing. None of those services started small.
It's a fact that there isn't yet a good recommendation engine for podcasts out there. There are tons of clients relying on a few (relatively dumb) directories. The first service that can crack that particular nut, could easily become a lifestyle business or even get acquired. Not everything has to be a unicorn.
I'm not criticizing the current state. Sorry if it felt that way. I'm suggesting to change the communication of what the product is about and have a good thought about what is the USP of the product. This is why I said that there may be a product but the way it is brought now is not what triggers me to use it or feel I need it. Maybe suggestion is enough to build a product around, who knows, but right now I came in expecting a service like netflix and it wasn't which made me close the product after a few seconds.
The title literally suggests me to compare the product to netflix.
Clicked through hoping to find a company that is going all out spending big on a vast array of podcast creators and content with hopes to dominate the space through sheer numbers and low subscription fees.
I think we may have differing views of what makes Netflix Netflix.
But it is laid out in titled rows like Netflix is. /s
An aside: I really wish we could find another word for "best". So tired of seeing that all over the web. Oh, and "modern" also, but at least I don't see that here.
Nowadays I don’t subscribe to any podcasts. I just find interesting episodes and add to playlist — like pocket/instapaper — episode-centric, instead of podcast-centric. https://www.listennotes.com/listen/
Every decent podcast player lets you stream as easy as downloading. Why I don't use the streaming is that when I go through a tunnel on the train I don't want the stream to stop. Same on a plane or underground.
Currently, its being fetched from Itunes. In coming weeks I will be adding features to save/follow, add rating.
Also there will be more sub-topics/genres
How do you source the podcasts? Do you consider YouTube interviews as podcasts? A lot of great content on YouTube is functionally equivalent to Podcasts (two people talking, interviews, etc.). I tried looking up the viral interview where Joe Rogan interviews Elon Musk (searched "joe rogan" and "elon musk" separately to increase my chances) and nothing came up in your search engine.
Not looking at youtube. But if that something people want I can look into adding that as well. Currently there are crawled on itunes, spotify and soundcloud.
Might be interesting to do; lots of stuff on YouTube (even though it has video) make for wonderful podcasts. Even if you project out the video content, they're still worth listening to. Not sure if they make it easy to distinguish between videos where the video part matters.
It looks like you don't have 'The Joe Rogan Experience' podcast either - 0 results for 'Rogan'. It's one of the most listened podcasts in the world so I think there's something wrong with your crawling.
128 comments
[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 53.2 ms ] threadWorks: https://podflix.app/category/Technology Doesn't work: https://podflix.app/category/Management%20&%20Marketing
[0] https://overcast.fm/
Also, there is RSS feed link if you go to the podcast page itself(RSS feed, URL, Ratings, Recommendations and episodes) Let me know if you are not able to find it.
It was a great podcast but slightly mis-categorized.
It is fine if you are planning on sticking to the "HN topics" type niches of tech, business, management, etc., but I am not sure I would use the Netflix comparison if you aren't aiming for a general audience.
Some suggestions: Would be useful to see the descriptions for each episodes. The save feature you mentioned, as well as some basic history of which episodes I've already heard, would be great as well.
I currently use the Stitcher podcast app and my favorite features are the offline-downloads and the "play this next" button for queuing up episodes. I've payed for Stitcher premium once since I use the product daily, but did not find much value added from it - if you can find some ways to offer value beyond what the existing apps are doing, there is a market to be had, though you certainly have some tough competition from Apple, Google, Spotify & the other apps, so I wish you the best of luck!
If you really weren't doing anything of that nature, then I'm sorry for suspecting you! Many people are trying to manipulate HN in this way, so we have to guard against it.
Why do you suspect foul play here, considering the OP is claiming not to do it?
Edit: and thanks ahead of time!
Also, your favicon needs to be changed from the Vue.js
Great product, best of luck
The 'flix' in Netflix refers to 'flicks', i.e. films.... that is clearly not the case here. Surely the name should have been something more like 'NetCasts'?
Ratings are actually something Netflix has proven to be bad at. They even want(ed) to remove the stars system and replace it for thumbs up. In other words, suggestions, while nice, are not why it became so big.
In the podcasts land most content is free. The shows are usually already containing the category in their title or else in their tags. This means a simple search works very well in opening a series of podcasts in any category. To know if it's any good from your app would be great but again, even netflix sucks at this. Googling for reviews is still your best shot both for series as well as podcasts.
I cannot see yet what Podflix brings over using my Overcast app and simply using the search functionality. I'm already getting all the content I want in a single search and at a great price you cannot hope to beat: free.
So I guess my question is: what problem are you solving? I would have a good session thinking about this and than broadcast very clearly on your landing page what problem you solve that I have today. This can be a problem I don't even know I have right now. However, it is not availability of great podcasts at a great price. I already have that. Overcast also gives me playlist and downloading for a ride.
But that's not up to you. That's up to users and the decisions they make.
In any case I wish you all the best and hope you find good product market fit!
The title literally suggests me to compare the product to netflix.
USP?
I think we may have differing views of what makes Netflix Netflix.
An aside: I really wish we could find another word for "best". So tired of seeing that all over the web. Oh, and "modern" also, but at least I don't see that here.
Nowadays I don’t subscribe to any podcasts. I just find interesting episodes and add to playlist — like pocket/instapaper — episode-centric, instead of podcast-centric. https://www.listennotes.com/listen/
And if you want to build an app, you can use podcast api: https://www.listennotes.com/api/
That said, I don’t know of any current podcast app that doesn’t handle streaming if that’s what you want.
They sort of have streaming but tend to be more oriented around "subscribing" which is unnecessary and frictiony, IMO.
For example, I want to binge listen to all podcast episodes of a person, eg kevin systrom https://lnns.co/Ut_qSy6-TwP
You can take a look at my playlist https://lnns.co/8OfbFlditV2
i wouldn't sign up to netflix for news but for movies and tv series, and likewise i expected podflix to give me audio books and audio dramas.
for fiction podcasts it is also crucial to keep already released content available (again, like netflix does).
i don't care much about rating, but i'd love decent categorizations that make finding content easier.
greetings, eMBee.
It shows up in iTunes search and gPodder search too, but not on that website. I also can't seem to be able to find out how to make it find my podcast.
Terms, Privacy, Categories...
I searched for "film" and 3 mental health podcasts were suggested.
[1] https://castbox.fm/