Apple is diving deeper into the world of podcasts.

The company reportedly plans to fund the production of original podcasts. Bloomberg said Apple executives have also contacted media companies to discuss buying exclusive rights to podcasts, and that the Apple Podcast app accounts for up to 70% of listening for most podcasts. Keep in mind Apple launched Podcast Analytics last year, giving podcast creators a look at their performance.

Apple "all but invented the podcasting business", Bloomberg noted, adding that it has avoided funding podcasts in the past in order to not appear like it's "playing favorites". One can presume its work on creating original programming for Apple TV Plus may have help change its mind.
Also, numbers show the home entertainment space is growing; people are subscribing to services at a clip never before seen.

Podcasting sales, for instance, have grown 65% a year for the past three years, according to IAB. Apple is zeroing in services itself, tinkering away on projects that'll serve up media to users and cement them to its phones and devices. It even recently announced a Podcasts app for Mac.

Details are slim otherwise. There's no word on when it'll start funding podcats, let alone what sort of podcasts or when they'll be available.