A Message From Our CEO Re: Howl --> Stitcher Premium

[Shannon 2953]

(POSTED ON BEHALF OF ERIK DIEHN)

 

Hello Earwolf fans!

 

A little over a year ago, we acquired Stitcher, one of the longest-running and most popular podcast listening apps. Doing so not only added a bunch of talented software developers to our team, but also gave us a time-tested, solid and reliable platform (on both iOS and Android) for delivering podcasts to people.

 

In December, we started making the original content we produced for Howl available as a new offering within Stitcher called Stitcher Premium. This was the first step in a plan to gradually merge all of the incredible work we’d done making great, original, ad-free audio content for Howl with the stability and reach of the Stitcher platform.

 

Today, we’re taking another step. We’re officially launching Stitcher Premium, the next evolution in our subscription audio service.

 

Just like Howl before it, Stitcher Premium will provide access to ad-free versions of Earwolf and “WTF with Marc Maron” archives, hundreds of comedy albums, and many hours of original content from the extended family of Earwolf creators -- "The Mysterious Secrets of Uncle Bertie's Botanarium," "Questions for Lennon," "Big Grande's The Teacher's Lounge," "The Complete Woman," and "The Layman with Jon Gabrus,” to name a few.

 

Unlike Howl, Stitcher already provides free access to tens of thousands of podcasts, which means you no longer have to use separate apps for your premium and ad-supported shows. Want to follow up hard-core politics shows from Crooked Media and NPR with much-needed relief from a CBB bonus ep? Need to flip back and forth between “Hardcore History” and “Hardcore Game of Thrones?” Stitcher has you covered.

 

If you're already a Howl subscriber, you’ll soon be able to switch to Stitcher Premium. Over the next few weeks, we’ll roll out a tool that lets you transfer all of your Howl account information (favorites, playlists, listening history) to Stitcher. You’ll see alerts in the Howl app guiding you through this process. If you don’t see them yet, don’t worry; we’re rolling out gradually, and you will see them soon. You can find all the details about transferring your account to Stitcher at http://www.stitcherpremium.com/migrate.

 

If you prefer Howl (hey, we love that logo, too!), you can keep using it. We’ll continue to publish premium content into the Howl apps and website for subscribers who wish to continue using them. All of the same premium content will be available on both platforms.

 

Thanks to all of you for being an Earwolf fan, and a special thanks to those who've already tried Howl and Stitcher Premium. Even though the name is changing, we’ll produce much more of the content you told us you love. On the way soon we have a new “Hollywood Handbook” spin-off, more "Comedy Bang! Bang!" character playlists, and some truly exciting surprises. And we’ll keep growing the family of talent, producers and publishers who work with Stitcher Premium, helping provide direct support for their efforts that reduces their reliance on advertising alone.

 

If you're a Howl subscriber already, we hope you'll make the jump to Stitcher Premium. If you've tried Howl in the past but are not currently a subscriber, we hope you'll give Stitcher Premium a whirl. And if you’ve never tried Howl at all, now is a great time to give all these great exclusive shows a listen. Sign up for a trial now and test out the new Stitcher Premium experience at Stitcher.com/Premium. For $5 off on me, use promo code ERIK at checkout.

 

If you have any questions about this process, or need help with transferring your account to Stitcher Premium, please drop us a line at support@stitcher.com.

 

Thanks again,

 

Erik Diehn

CEO, Midroll / Stitcher / Earwolf

[Trurl 38]

Was expecting something like that, bur what'll be the upshot of Howl from hereon? So much potential, and a much better name and interface, if slightly raw. Guess it now needs more to achieve its purpose.