Spotify’s CEO Daniel Ek has broken his silence on Meghan Markle’s Archetypes podcast being axed saying the streaming giant is “moving on.”
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has shed some light on why Meghan Markle’s Archetypes podcast was axed, suggesting the 12-part series failed to make consumers “happy.”
Mr Ek told the BBC the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were offered a $20 million deal as part of the streaming giant offering “new creators new avenues.”
However, not all of the new projects actually “worked,” he said.
“We thought new innovation was needed to happen here. We thought we can come in and offer a great experience that both makes consumers very happy and allows new creators new avenues,” Mr Ek told the outlet.
“The truth of the matter is some of it has worked, some of it hasn't. We're learning from those and we are moving on and we wish all of the ones we didn't renew with the best of success they can have going forward.”
The comments come less than two weeks after Meghan officially abandoned her 17-month battle to trademark the word “Archetypes.”
The 42-year-old’s talent agent WME released a statement days after the Sussexes’ were dropped, saying the mother-of-two was still hoping to release the next season of Archetypes on another platform.
However new documents from U.S. Patent and Trademark Office suggest the former Suits actress would rebrand the series if she did move to a new platform.
The show’s producers were informed in June the podcast, which explores the labels which hold women back, wouldn’t be renewed.
The Sussexes inked the deal with Spotify in late 2020, but in almost three years the one season of Archetypes is the only project they have completed.
Following their axing, top Spotify executive Bill Simmons slammed the royal couple labelling the pair "f**king grifters".
“The f**king grifters. That's the podcast we should have launched with them,” he said in an episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast.