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Paywall podcast app Luminary has hired Simon Sutton (pictured) as its new CEO. Founder Matt Sacks will become Executive Chairman. Sutton is the former President and Chief Revenue Officer of HBO. Luminary has also announced that it has raised an additional $30 million in financing from existing and new investors.
Earlier this month Luminary Co-founder Joe Purzycki resigned as Chief Strategy Officer. No reason was given.
Luminary was founded by Sacks in 2018 with $100 million in VC money. It’s unknown if their paywall business model of $8.00 per month for exclusive shows is profitable. The company is private and does not have to reveal any financials. The additional infusion of $30 million and a CEO change may indicate that it is not.
The company got off to a rocky start when it came out of the gate boasting about its plan to put podcasts behind a paywall and stating that there didn’t need to be ads in podcasts. The company made several more mistakes along the way including loading shows up on the free side of its app without telling hosts it would be doing so.