Bad Robot is launching an audio division and has struck an exclusive multiyear deal with Spotify, the companies said on Wednesday.
Bad Robot Audio, which will develop and produce original scripted and unscripted audio content, will be led by Christina Choi, who was most recently the director of content partnerships at Audible. Podcasts and other audio content coming out of Bad Robot Audio will stream exclusively on Spotify as part of the multiyear deal.
“Given Bad Robot’s work in TV, film, games and music, podcasts was an obvious topic of conversation within the company for a long time,” Bad Robot co-CEO J.J. Abrams said in a statement. “We are thrilled to welcome Christina Choi to lead the way, and to collaborate with Dawn [Ostroff, Spotify’s chief content and advertising business officer] and the incredible Spotify team to bring some incredible stories to life.”
Choi, who spent seven years at Spotify prior to joining Audible, said she was looking to create audio content that is “meaningful, inclusive and creator first.” Spotify, meanwhile, has struck a number of exclusive deals with top talent, including Barack and Michelle Obama, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Joe Rogan, Dax Shepard and Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper.
“We are committed to bringing some of the world’s most respected and dynamic creators to Spotify exclusively, and we are thrilled to add Bad Robot and J.J. Abrams’s mind bending and world building stories, alongside their hugely loyal following of dedicated fans, to our wide-ranging catalogue of world-class audio talent,” Ostroff said.
