Spotify boss suggests Harry and Meghan’s failed podcast didn’t ‘make consumers happy’

The Chief Executive of streaming giant Spotify has suggested that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's deal with the company was cut as it "didn't make consumers happy".

Meghan Markle was the host of the award-winning podcast that ran for 12 episodes last year. In the series, Meghan sat down for personal interviews with artists, athletes, and experts discussing the history of stereotypes against women.

The purpose of the show was to "investigate, dissect and subvert the labels that try to hold women back".

In an interview with the BBC, the Spotify boss has shed light on why he feels the podcast was not successful and why the couple may have been dropped from their £18million podcast deal.

In an interview with BBC, the Chief Executive explained: "We thought new innovation was needed to happen here. We thought we can come in and offer a great experience that both makes consumers very happy and allows new creators new avenues."

He added: "And the truth of the matter is some of it has worked, some of it hasn't. We're learning from those and we are moving on and we wish all of the ones we didn't renew with the best of success they can have going forward."

The comments come after the Sussexes officially ended their Spotify deal in June after one series. The news of the deal's end was confirmed in a joint statement from Archewell and Spotify which read: "Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together."

Before the podcast was cancelled, it was reported that Prince Harry was interested in interviewing Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Pope Francis and Mark Zuckerberg on the podcast about their personal childhood traumas.

Despite this never coming to fruition, Meghan did to bring on a number of well-known celebrities including her close friend Serena Williams, Mindy Kaling, and Paris Hilton.

Ahead of the show being axed, it was revealed that the couple had submitted an application to get exclusive rights to the term "Archetypes", but the US Patent and Trademark Office refused.

Harry and Meghan were understood to have filed the application to try and obtain exclusive use of "Archetypes" for "downloadable audio recordings and podcasts" and anything related to the "cultural treatment of women and stereotypes facing women."

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