Mark Cuban plans to enter the podcasting industry as early as this year. According to a new report from the Edge, Cuban plans to launch a new podcast app that allows hosts to ‘talk live with fans and earn their conversations.’
The report explains that Cubans will work with Falon Fatemi in the beginning. Fatemi previously founded and sold the AI Customer Service Node. Fatemi declined to comment on the Edge, but Cuban has confirmed that he is a co-founder.
Mark Cuban starts with the audio and podcasting hype. In addition to co-founder Falon Fatemi, he plans to launch Fireside, a “next-generation podcast platform” that facilitates live conversations, according to an email sent to Edge. The app idea is similar to the buzzing live audio startup Clubhouse, except with the ability to record conversations. A source close to Fireside says the app plans to go public this year.
Fireside reportedly raised a ‘million’ dollar seed round, despite still working in ‘stealth mode’. There are no details on the establishment of the company, but the mailing lists have already started to appear in September, the report states.
Specific details about the service are unclear, but the mailing lists for the service make clear claims about how it would differ from social media:
Fireside’s post claims that ‘social media has let us down’ by ‘creating antagonistic echo chambers with communication media that only promote an indignation culture and business models that encourage the spread of disinformation.’ According to Fireside, ‘civic intelligent discourse, shared connected experiences and genuine relationship work virtually’ want to be promoted through its broadcasting platform, which will promote a social impact through meaningful conversations on a large scale. ‘
Fireside users would ‘be able to broadcast, record and monetize conversations while using Fireside’s built-in analytics tools to determine which content performs best,’ the report said.
The name Fireside gets well-deserved criticism because there is already a popular and successful podcasting hosting and analytics service called Fireside, founded by Dan Benjamin in 2016. In a statement to the Edge, Benjamin explained:
“Creating a memorable brand is a challenge and we have heard from customers (and potential customers) who are confused about this,” he wrote to the Verge. ‘It’s surprising and more than a little worrying. I imagine they just did not realize that we here at Fireside have been in podcast hosting for almost five years, or about my own personal involvement in podcasting since 2006. Of course, I invite them to contact me so we can start a conversation. and find a solution. ‘
Fireside will be launched sometime this year, and it joins the increasingly crowded sound space, such as Clubhouse and Twitter’s Spaces feature.
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