Medium is on a roll. After buying Projector, a media design platform a few days ago, they have just acquired Knowable, a company focused on audio services.
Money can't be an issue
First things first, what this tells us is that Medium isn't experiencing money problems. They've just bought two large companies for quite the paycheck, I would imagine.
This is both good and bad.
- It's good because it means Medium is not desperately trying to survive. They're thriving and expanding.
- It's bad because this money could have gone to the writers instead. But let's not get carried, these acquisitions might mean great things for writers.
An interesting step
Audio is growing rapidly. Podcasts, audiobooks, and social networks like Clubhouse or Twitter's Spaces feature. Even Substack has integrated podcasts a while ago.
Buying a company like Knowable that is focused on audio courses, sort of like Skillshare but not with video, is very exciting for Medium's future.
I see a couple of feature ideas here:
- Medium will add a "read this" or "listen to this" feature for all writers. I'm not sure how big Knowable is in that regard, meaning natural language processing. But it could be a nice add-on.
- Medium could expand to audio in a big way, like introducing Podcasts series, picking fitting writers and stories for audio streaming sessions. This might be huge as this would certainly be a great way to promote our writing.
- Medium could join the online course world. After all, this is the core business of Knowable. It's somewhat less likely as Medium execs are planning on keeping Knowable a standalone service for now. In contrast to Projector which they will retire next year. It might be on their roadmap though.
The bottom line
In the words of Ev Williams:
Today, I'm happy to announce that Medium has acquired Knowable, an audio-first learning company, to bring audio capabilities to our readers, members, and creators.
Knowable and Medium will be collaborating closely to help more people spread great ideas across text and audio. Stay tuned for more updates in 2022.
It's exciting. Medium is not dying. Medium is expanding. Not only in terms of writing and reading, but in other areas as well.
What would you like to see from this acquisition?
- a podcast integration?
- audio add-ons for our stories and a "listen to this" button
- audio online course integration?
- something else?
Tell me!
P.S.: First of all, you should get my posts in your inbox. Do that here! Secondly, if you like to experience Medium yourself, consider supporting me and thousands of other writers by signing up for a membership. It only costs $5 per month, it supports us, writers, greatly, and you have the chance to make money with your writing as well. When I started, I made $3000 in 6 months. By signing up with this link, you'll support me directly with a portion of your fee, it won't cost you more. If you do so, thank you a million times!