Stephen Downes

You know, it's funny how the first question always seems to be, "how can we make money off it?" I look at podcasting, and what I see is a way to do something I couldn't before: to preserve my talks and make them available to a wider audience. And if you look at the social drivers - the ability to time-shift audio content, freedom from an excess of advertisements, access to diverse content - it isn't the commerical aspect of podcasting that is driving its popularity. Anyhow, this article offers an abridged history of podcasting, explores the social drivers, and then outlines some business models: sponsorships, advertising, donations and subscription fees. The usual unimaginative selection.