Joe Rogan was reportedly paid over $200 million in Spotify deal

Joe Rogan's Spotify deal is allegedly double what was originally reported, claim sources from Spotify.

Spotify announced a licence agreement with Joe Rogan in May 2020, permitting him to deliver his hugely successful podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, exclusively on the streaming service. Rogan was said to have received $100 million as part of the transaction at the time.

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However, according to “two people familiar with the details of the transaction” - this deal was actually double what it was originally reported. They told The New York Times that Spotify and Rogan actually had a deal worth around $200 million dollars that spans three and a half years.

According to a former Spotify employee who spoke to Pitchfork anonymously, the deal was for more than $200 million.

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Long before the Rogan deal, Spotify had expressed interest in expanding its podcast business. Spotify bought Gimlet Media Inc. and Anchor, two podcast startups, in February 2019.

Spotify revealed a year later that it had purchased The Ringer, a sports and entertainment website known for its podcasts. According to reports, Gimlet Media and The Ringer cost less than $200 million.

Recently, the streaming giant has come under pressure for its association with Joe Rogan due to an episode of his podcast which perpetuates anti-vaccination ideology. In January, hundreds of medical professionals signed an open letter to the platform for its spread of misinformation.

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Shortly after this controversy came to light, musician Neil Young pulled his music from Spotify after accusing the company of “spreading fake information"- a move that was followed by Joni Mitchell, and David Crosby—have also requested their music’s removal from Spotify.

Amidst the height of the controversy, the platform saw an increase in traffic to its cancellation page.

Pitchfork has reached out to representatives for Spotify for comment and additional information about the value of Rogan's deal.

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Aneesa Ahmed is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Twitter