CEO Daniel Ek announced in a blog post two acquisitions, Gimlet and Anchor, in addition to other unspecified deals planned. In all, Spotify plans to spend US$400 million to US$500 million on the “emerging podcast marketplace.” (CNN)

Talking point: Spotify currently claims to be the second-biggest podcasting platform. These acquisitions show its continued ambitions of being a major player in both ends of the industry: production and distribution. It’s reportedly paying US$230 million for Gimlet Media—the five-year-old studio known for popular shows like “Reply All” and “Homecoming”—which will now be tasked with creating new shows for the platform’s subscribers. Its other acquisition—four-year-old Anchor, for which the price hasn’t been disclosed—is a podcast-making platform. The news comes on the heels of the company’s fourth-quarter earnings, its first time posting positive operating profit, net income and free cash flow. However, Spotify disappointed in revenues, where it reported US$1.702 billion—short of the US$1.710 billion analysts were expecting.