Podcast creators can now submit their RSS feed to YouTube and YouTube Music as revealed by the company in a video uploaded to its Creator Insider channel. It was previously announced in August that support was coming for RSS feeds. The functionality was available as an invite-only beta test last year but now it’s available to creators across all markets.
Since its launch on February 14, 2005, YouTube has been at the fore front as the leading free video-sharing website that makes it easy to watch online videos. Youtube however is taking a step further into hosting podcasts as announced in August 2023 during the Podcast Movement conference week. YouTube product lead Steve McLendon confirmed the platform will be rolling out support for RSS uploads for podcasters by the end of the year, among other updates.
YouTube is experimenting with AI and Music.
The new functionality had been in beta testing since early in the year 2023, as a strategic, invite-only pilot. YouTube additionally confirmed that it’s rolling out support for podcasts on YouTube Music by the end of year, 2023, as well. The company previously announced it was adding podcasts to its music streaming service in the U.S. across iOS, Android, and the web, but it had not yet expanded to other markets.
This move to embrace RSS feeds helps YouTube cement its position as a top destination for podcasts. Other platforms only make RSS feeds available for listeners, whereas YouTube takes episodes from an RSS feed and turns them into YouTube videos. This benefits audio-first podcasters since YouTube automatically takes an uploaded RSS feed and creates videos with the podcast’s show art as a static image.
How to Submit an RSS Feed to YouTube.
Podcasters can submit an RSS feed to YouTube by going to YouTube Studio, clicking the “Create” button in the upper-right corner and then selecting “Submit RSS feed.” There’s also an option to connect an existing podcast to an RSS feed in the Content tab. When a new episode is added to the RSS feed, YouTube will automatically upload the video to the channel and notify subscribers.