Audacy has confirmed plans to close its Pineapple Street Studios podcast division in the coming weeks, with 30 employees seeing their positions eliminated.
In a statement, the company shared that the decision comes after a move to prioritize its resources in the podcasting space.
“This difficult decision aligns our resources with our core strengths and the most promising growth areas for our podcasting business,” an Audacy spokesperson shared. “We’re sorry to say goodbye to talented colleagues and are grateful for their contributions.”
Audacy originally acquired Pineapple Street Studios in 2019, as well as podcast studio Cadence 13. The company later named the founder of the studio — Jenna Weiss-Berman — as the company’s Executive Vice President of Podcasts. She departed the company earlier this year, with Leah Reis-Dennis being named as her successor.
The news of a sale of the podcast studio comes after Audacy had previously looked to sell the company. The radio group paid $18 million to buy the studio, and it was reported to earn more than $10 million in annual revenue before the decision to shutter it was finally enacted.
A report from Variety suggests that some programs from Pineapple Street Studios will be folded into the Audacy Podcasts division.
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