Luminary Media, a Chicago-based subscription podcast network with exclusive content, reportedly raised around $60 million in new funding. The company has now raised nearly $100 million in total, from backers like NEA.
Why it matters: This comes just weeks after Spotify acquired a pair of large podcast networks, with its own ambitions of becoming Netflix for podcasts. "To some degree, of course, all media start-ups think they are going to be the next Netflix. The test for Luminary will come in the execution. And there are plenty of challenges. Subscription-based businesses are hot at the moment, but analysts say that consumers will begin pushing back and asking, How many entertainment services do I really need to be paying for every month?" writes Brooks Barnes in the New York Times.