[hrktb]

Wouldn't Patreon's success be a counterpoint ?

The vast majority of people don't pay, but there seem to be enough people paying that it at least balances the ad dependency of a number of creators. I might be biased, but most of the content I really didn't want to go away or bend backward to get sponsors seem to have successful followings (99pi, the whole radiotopia rooster, Hello Internet, CGP Grey, a few minor ones like rebuild.fm)

I think more and more the creative process could start by kickstarting the project and gauge how much of a public there is willing to pay for it, before going full steam ahead.

[SomeOldThrow]

None if the podcasts I listen to have ads. I listen to about 15 distinct podcasts. There’s clearly a market.