Photo Credit: Spotify
TikTok’s Head of Content Partnerships, Bryan Thoensen, jumps ship for Spotify, where he will oversee the company’s talk creator team’s ever-expanding exclusive podcast strategy.
Bryan Thoensen, TikTok’s former head of content partnerships, has left the company to join Spotify as senior director, head of content strategy and partnerships for the platform’s talk creator team. In his new role, Thoensen will oversee the team’s business development and acquisitions as part of the company’s efforts to gain more exclusive podcasts.
Thoensen was previously the head of content partnerships at short-form video app TikTok. He led the company’s relationships with global public figures and brands, including the NBA, NFL, Condé Nast, and NBC. He was also instrumental in building and supporting a range of creator communities.
At Spotify, he will remain based in Los Angeles and report to Max Cutler, Spotify’s new VP of talk creator content. Cutler was previously head of new content initiatives and managing director at the company’s Parcast studio. Before joining TikTok in July 2019, Thoensen held senior positions in content and partnerships at WME, Hulu, and Fullscreen.
“Bryan’s knowledge of the creator landscape will be critical as we build out our platform strategy with the goal of becoming a true platform beyond distribution, and reinforce our mission of building trust with creators,” Cutler wrote in an internal memo to staff.
Earlier this month, Spotify announced two new managing directors for its podcast studios, Gimlet and Parcast. Nicole Beemsterboer, an NPR veteran, will head up Gimlet, while Liliana Kim, formerly the general manager of APM Studios, will lead Parcast.
These promotions come on the heels of Spotify’s cancelation of 11 original podcasts from both Gimlet and Parcast. At least 38 staffers lost their jobs, according to the unions representing Gimlet and Parcast employees. Spotify is seeking to make itself the exclusive audio destination for a variety of content beyond just music streaming. Podcasts have become a major focus and now audiobooks join the fray.