Mark Cuban plans to enter the podcasting industry later this year. According to a new report by the Border, Cuban is planning to launch a new podcast app that allows hosts to “talk to fans live and monetize their conversations”.
The report explains that Cuban will work alongside Falon Fatemi in the match. Fatemi co-founded and previously sold AI Node’s customer relationship service. Fatemi declined to comment on Border, but Cuban confirmed that he is a co-founder.
Mark Cuban is getting into the audio and podcasting wave. Along with co-founder Falon Fatemi, he plans to launch Fireside, a “state-of-the-art podcast platform” that facilitates live conversation, according to an email sent to possible creative partners seen by Border. The idea of the app is similar to the lively Clubhouse live audio startup, except with the ability to record conversations natively. A source close to Fireside says the app plans to launch publicly this year.
Fireside reportedly raised a round of “multimillion dollar” seeds, despite still operating in “stealth mode”. There are no details on when the company was founded, but job advertisements started appearing as early as last September, the report says.
The specific details about the service are unclear, but the job listings for the service make bold statements about how it would differ from social media:
Fireside’s job ad states that “social media has failed us” to create “antagonistic echo chambers with media that only promote a culture of outrage and business models that encourage the spread of misinformation.” Fireside, says the post, is looking to promote “intelligent civil discourse, shared connected experiences and building genuine relationships virtually” through its transmission platform, which “will promote social impact through meaningful conversations at scale”.
Fireside users “would be able to stream, record and monetize conversations by using Fireside’s built-in analytics tools to find out what content performs best,” explains the report.
The name Fireside is facing well-deserved criticism, as there is already a popular and successful podcasting analysis and hosting service called Fireside, founded by Dan Benjamin in 2016. In a statement to the Border, Benjamin explained:
“Creating a memorable brand is a challenge, and we’ve heard from customers (and potential customers) who are confused about it,” he writes to Verge. “It is surprising and very worrying. I imagine they just didn’t realize that we here at Fireside have hosted a podcast for almost five years, or about my own personal involvement in podcasting since 2006. Of course, I invite you to contact me so that we can start a dialogue and find a solution. “
Fireside is scheduled for release this year and joins the increasingly crowded audio space, alongside features such as Clubhouse and Twitter.
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