With Blendle Audio, the digital kiosk introduces a way to keep discovering articles, even if you don’t have the time or feel like reading them.
Blendle unveils audio listening version
Podcasts are growing in popularity and with the rise of smart speakers like the Google Home (and soon the HomePod) it is becoming even easier to listen to news, rather than read it.
Blendle Audio is right on time in that respect: the news app introduces today, in its own words, ‘its biggest step since its inception’. The name nicely summarizes what the new function does: reading the most interesting articles of that day.
All publishers who have their titles in Blendle cooperate. That means that one morning you will hear an interview from the Linda, followed by an opinion from the Volkskrant or a report from the AD.
This is how Blendle Audio works
When you start the Blendle app, tap on ‘listen now’ to start the audio function. Each article is introduced with a short summary, so you can quickly determine whether it is for you. If not, swipe the screen to go to the next story. Just like you choose another song in Spotify.
The feature is only available to Blendle Premium members, although free users can try it out for free. Because Blendle only makes the feature available to paying users, you won’t hear any commercials between articles. A subscription to Blendle Premium costs 12.99 euros per month.
Every morning, the selection of articles is read by ten Dutch Journalism students. Each bundle of audio articles lasts 15 minutes and starts with the latest headlines and the weather forecast for that day. Blendle hopes to offer a complete package so that you no longer have to turn on the radio in the morning.
→ Download Blendle from the App Store (free)