In Landmark Deal, Podcast Acquired by Wikipedia
(L to R): Coats, Wales and Strunk
SAN FRANCISCO — In a watershed moment for the world of podcasting, the series Two Designers Walk Into a Bar has been acquired by Wikipedia for a record amount of $250 million. Produced by full-time designers and part-time podcasters Todd Coats and Elliot Strunk, the twelve episode, one season series has garnered incredible attention and a dedicated listener base during the pandemic.
Facilitated by SoftBank as part of their Vision Fund, the deal nets Coats and Strunk $80 million each after all is said and done, along with seats on the Wikimedia Foundation advisory board.
Unofficial sources claim that the Earwolf Podcast Network, famous for its celebrity podcasts and Radiotopia, the Roman Mars-helmed podcast collective, also expressed interest resulting in a quiet bidding war over the last two weeks.
“We started our Two Designers podcast with a simple premise and an equally simple goal,” stated Coats. “To be the biggest podcast featuring two guys named Todd and Elliot talking about design and pop culture. On this front, we have succeeded beyond our wildest dreams.”
“We were also hoping it would lead to other people buying us free drinks in bars,” added Strunk. “Unfortunately, launching during a time when all bars were closed made that hard to come by. So we’ve been buying beer ourselves and then drinking it at home. Live and learn!”
When asked why Wikipedia would be interested in such a transaction, founder Jimmy Wales stated, “Elliot and Todd know so much about so many different things, merging their podcast with our global online knowledge base felt like the right thing to do. Plus, it was brought to our attention that much of their content was, in fact, sourced from our site.”
Masayoshi Son, founder and leader of SoftBank, stated his interest in the deal stemmed from needing to look at greener pastures after the failed WeWork IPO. “We have a saying in banking: fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. Well, this guy only plans on being fooled once and keeping any shame firmly on the shoulders of others.”
As part of the deal, the podcast will be translated into the 321 languages Wikipedia’s content is available in. Additionally, links to individual episodes will be added to their appropriate subject matter articles in the Further Reading and External Links sections.
For more information, visit www.twodesignerswalkintoabar.com or contact Coats’s and Strunk’s talent representative:
Stanley Lipshitz
William Morris Endeavor
(336) 407-6769
hello@twodesignerswalkintoabar.com