Meghan Markle served as the host of the podcast, which ran for 12 episodes last year with the stated mission of challenging, dissecting, and subverting the labels that hold women back. The chief executive of Spotify has now shed light on why he believes the podcast didn't succeed, potentially leading to the famous couple's removal from their £18 million podcast deal.
In an interview with the BBC, the Spotify boss explained, "We thought new innovation was needed to happen here. We thought we could come in and offer a great experience that both makes consumers very happy and allows new creators new avenues. The truth of the matter is, some of it has worked and some of it hasn't. We're learning from those, and we wish all of the ones we didn't renew with the best of success they can have going forward."
During the interview, he was questioned about whether the 12 podcasts spanning 2 years from the Sussexes were worth £18 million. Responding to this inquiry, the Spotify CEO expressed frustration.
The Sussexes officially parted ways with Spotify in June after just one series. Following the deal's collapse, they attempted to gain exclusive copyright ownership of the name "Archewell Audio." However, their request was denied by the US Patent and Trademark Office due to the likelihood of confusion with an existing brand.
The Spotify deal with Harry and Meghan has been the subject of controversy, with critics suggesting that the couple had not produced content worth the multi-million-pound investment. This situation led to Spotify providing explanations to its investors, and even a Spotify executive had to address the issue in the British Parliament due to conflicts in the music world.
Meanwhile, Spotify's investment in Montecito, their home studio, has proven more successful, including live reconstructions of podcast episodes. There have been reports of equipment being moved from the Royal couple's mansion, indicating that an agreement has not been reached on the contract's conclusion. If both parties fail to come to an agreement, it's likely that Meghan and Harry will need to resort to legal action.
The Spotify executive also took the opportunity to criticize the Sussexes on an episode of his own podcast, "The Griff," suggesting that it should have been the podcast they initially launched.
