• RxBrad@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Well, crap. This feels like the first sign that the app is going to die when it doesn’t get enough money out of this price hike.

    What’s a good open alternative?

  • Idefinitelydonotknow@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    This is kinda odd timing.

    I just started using AntennaPod on Monday since I want to switch to FOSS apps as much as possible and also deleted my PocketCasts account completely.

    It sucks that there is no such account in my Google Podcasts app, but uninstalled that too. AntennaPod, FTW!

    • Cole@midwest.social
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      1 year ago

      AntennaPod

      As a (now former) Pocketcasts user, I thank you for letting me know about AntennaPod!

      • inspector@gadgetro.id
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        1 year ago

        This is for the older version though, IIRC

        Edit: Ah, it seems I missed Automattic acquiring Pocket Casts. Would make sense they’re open source, since Automattic is a fully open source company.

        • ijeff@lemdro.idOPM
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          1 year ago

          Yeah, I’m very glad to see this and it actually makes me more inclined to support them.

    • Kale@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Fun fact about Antennapod, if you want to sort new podcast episodes by prioroty, rename the podcast with a number based on your priority for that podcast and then sort the que by podcast title. Now episodes of your favorite podcast will always be up at the top and ready even if a *newer episode of anothet pod is released. Reasons you may do this besides just having a favorite podcast over others is if you listen to timely podcast that you always want to listen to before others that can wait.

  • Cryptic Fawn@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    1 year ago

    Holy shit that price is just insane. No one is going to be willing to pay that when Spotify is cheaper by a lot…

    • ijeff@lemdro.idOPM
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      1 year ago

      Do people really use Spotify for podcasts? I don’t find it a great experience. Pocket Casts seems to be solid as a free app along with other alternatives (including open-source).

      • Polo421@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        I’m pretty sure the only people who use Spotify for podcasts are unvaccinated Roganites

        • whynotzoidberg@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Just here to say fuck Dax Shepherd for being a Spotify exclusive podcaster.

          It’s the only reason my family plan hasn’t been migrated, really. I don’t want to deal with that fall out.

          • Radium@sh.itjust.works
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            1 year ago

            Seriously. I have the Spotify app installed just to listen to his occasional podcast. It’s inspired me to start writing a self hosted app that will archive all your podcasts locally so next time a podcaster decides to sell out I won’t lost their back catalog. And then I also have a place to stream their newer stuff that I figure out a way to pirate.

            The podcast market is in an extremely precarious state due to giant corporations like I heart media and spotify trying to insert themselves into the market, implement Chokepoints with exclusive content, and finally extinguish open alternatives.

          • Auli@lemmy.ca
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            1 year ago

            Excited to here Dax has a podcast but also sad since I won’t be listening to it.

      • Cryptic Fawn@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        1 year ago

        I use Spotify for podcasts, though if the rumors of them increasing their sub is true, I’ll be swapping to open source alternative’s.

    • Schaedelbach@feddit.de
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      1 year ago

      Spotify is 10 a month for a normal subscription, so Pocket Casts is roughly a third of that for one year. I don’t like Spotify for podcasts at all but it is a big part of the service nowadays. Still awfully expensive for Pocket Casts when you consider that it is just for podcasts and no music - unlike Spotify.

    • Orange@sh.itjust.works
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      1 year ago

      You don’t need to pay for the subscription to use PocketCasts for podcasts. There is a free version that does everything you would need it to.

  • ijeff@lemdro.idOPM
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    1 year ago

    I personally have lifetime plus due to having bought the app early on. I still use it regularly but don’t use the fancy web interface.

    • aln@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Remember when they went back on their promise that the $10 would be permanent premium? Then went on a rant about how they shouldn’t honor those purchases. I stopped using them right then and there, even if I was grandfathered in.

      • ijeff@lemdro.idOPM
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        1 year ago

        Yep. I did appreciate when they reversed course though. App seems to have been sold a few times since then.

    • RandallFlagg@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Ya I bought the lifetime subscription years ago when they still offered it so I’m basically grandfathered into that thankfully. Idk if I could justify a recurring subscription for a podcast app.

    • inspector@gadgetro.id
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      1 year ago

      Same here. I have lifetime plus from having bought it ages ago, but I’ve simply just defaulted to listening to podcasts on my Nextcloud News app out of convenience. It has a play and pause button, and that’s mostly all I need from my podcast app.

  • quortez@kbin.social
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    1 year ago

    Over 200% markup in a single pricing change, yeesh

    You think they’d gradually ease people into it at least. This app is always on something

  • dankeck@beehaw.org
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    1 year ago

    I subscribed to Pocket Casts when it was owned by public media entities, and it worked well. But after they sold it off, I just switched to AntennaPod and it does everything I need too.

  • Teknikal@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Used to love pocket casts but I switched to antennapod after they basically changed the whole app into something that made no sense to me.

    Would never pay a subscription to listen to podcasts personally.

    • Avigrace@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      You inspired me to look at antennapod and within 10 minutes pocket casts was uninstalled.

      Been using pocket casts since the beginning but starting to get fed up with apps wanting more and more of my money.

      • Teknikal@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        It’s a good app especially for free. It did take me a week or so to adjust and customise it how I like things but it does the job pretty well.

  • mbryson@lemmy.ca
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    1 year ago

    I had bought it outright so I have the “lifetime subscription” after the uproar when the introduced this subscription model. This rate hike has me a little worried though they may go back on that and force purchasers to pony up for the subscription as well to get short term profits up (albeit at a reduced rate for like 3 months or so, as is standard with this sort of thing).

    • AaronMaria
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      1 year ago

      The original plan was 2 years for people who bought it, only after backlash did they give out the lifetime subscriptions.

  • blindbunny
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    1 year ago

    I left when they changed the interface to what ever abomination it is now. You used to be able to basically filter folders e.g. ttrpg actule plays, music, talk shows etc. chronologically wheather or not you’ve listened to it before. I should have switched to some open source alternative but I went with google again likely to get burned. Any recommendations?

    • Hobovision@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      Tbh you might be able to come back go pocket casts. They added a bunch of functionality back over time. Can’t remember what it used to be like anymore, but it works for me.

      I have a free account and do have access to the filters. You can filter by podcast, started/not started, duration, etc. It may still not work for your needs though.

  • parachaye@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I left pocket casts before they went the sub model. antennapod is my app of choice and works perfectly.

  • Framecode@lemmy.fmhy.ml
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    1 year ago

    I’m one of the people who doesn’t listen to podcasts very much and therefore doesn’t need any extended features that would require me to pay for an app.

    As long as the app has a play/pause button, and rewind/fast forward buttons, then that’s all I need lol

    • Hotpuck6@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I listen to podcasts daily and have 107 days of listening time in pocketcasts over the span of years, but honestly their premium features just aren’t worth the cost, even at the cheaper level. I paid in the past because it’s a great app but realized I basically never used the paid features and stopped.

      I think a lot of people who were also paying just to support a great app are going to second guess if theyre actually using those paid features with the price hike.

    • MRPP@sopuli.xyz
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      1 year ago

      Yeah, Addict is great for what it is especially for thr price. Paying that much for basically a nothingburger seems weird?

      • skepticalifornia@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Yes, I am not sure who this is targeted to exactly - there are so many better ways to consume podcasts and the other content they mention, for less money, or free in many cases. I had purchased Pocket Casts years ago before they went free, then sold out to PBS, was still free, and now this - seems like just dying to piece together a business model that’s is doomed to fail (again).

    • Midnitte@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      Any way to get the logo of the podcast to show like from Pocket Casts?

      Edit: Apparently by default it only downloads over wifi, nevermind!