Spotify Podcasts are now available on Amazon Alexa-enabled devices including, of course, Amazon's own Echo devices.  The news follows on from October's announcements that Alexa would support Apple Podcasts and also that Google Assistant would support Spotify Podcasts, too. 

You can now make Spotify your preferred podcast provider. Just open the Alexa app, go to Settings, select Music & Podcasts, and link/manage new services. Each time you ask for a podcast Alexa will then try and get it from Spotify first. 

Spotify has been busy ramming its podcasts down users' throats during 2020 and has a bunch of popular podcasters exclusive to its platform including the controversial Joe Rogan, Michelle Obama and now the Duke and Dutchess of Sussex. Amazon is also now trying to get a slice of the pie with Amazon Podcats, too.

Consumption of podcasts on Spotify doubled in the year to 30 June, though the number of active users listening to podcasts only increased a tiny amount from 19 to 21 percent. It's clear that the users that are using Spotify Podcasts are consuming more of them, probably because they're presented alongside other music they may be listening to.  However, the injection of podcasts into the Spotify home screen has made it into a mess, while the platform continues to try and recommend podcasts to users even if they don't want them. 

Spotify adds that podcasts created on Anchor, Spotify's own podcasting platform, rose more than 380 percent over that period, too, showing that creators are definitely more than happy with what Spotify has to offer them.