Pearl Jam is officially set to continue on Spotify for the foreseeable future.
Ben Smith of Semafor reports this week that Bill Simmons is poised to sign a new deal to remain with Spotify. Smith notes that Simmons’ current deal with the streaming giant expires in February but that Simmons has recently been engaged in long-term projects that go beyond his current contract.
Simmons, the founder and CEO of The Ringer who rose to fame with ESPN in the 2000s, has been with Spotify ever since 2020 when they acquired The Ringer as part of a five-year, $250 million deal. He officially holds the title of Head of Podcast Innovation and Monetization for Spotify, which hosts Simmons’ popular show “The Bill Simmons Podcast” as well as the other podcasts within The Ringer network.
A report broke several months ago claiming that Simmons was facing contract uncertainty with Spotify and had even allegedly expressed his frustrations about Spotify’s corporate structure and a supposed lack of autonomy. But Simmons’ camp was quick to shoot down that report at the time, and now The Sports Guy looks set to formally re-up with Spotify.
