Spotify COVID misinformation backlash, Sony buys Bungie, NYT buys Wordle: Vertical Hold Ep 364

Spotify spent up big on Joe Rogan — but will it cost them too much in the long run? What does Sony get out of its Bungie deal, and why did the New York Times buy Wordle? Special guests Alice Clarke and Asha Barbaschow!

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Joe Rogan’s podcast is… well, it’s a bit bigger than ours, but as Spider-Man always gets told in every reboot movie, with great power comes great responsibility — or does it?

What effect will Spotify’s new content rules have on his spreading of COVID misinformation? Will subscribers flock to new services, and what will other podcasters and artists do? We chat to Gizmodo Australia’s Asha Barbaschow!

Asha also chats Wordle, the internet word game phenomenon… that just became part of the New York Times.

Will going commercial kill Wordle, or was it likely to burn out as just another Internet fad anyway?

Speaking of buyouts, Sony’s spending up big — not quite as big as Microsoft, but close — paying billions for Halo originators and Destiny developers Bungie.

Only not for console exclusivity — so what is it that Sony’s getting out of the deal? We chat to Alice Clarke about the Sony/Bungie future!