Premium Podcasting Content

PowerPress allows you to create private podcast feeds that require a username and password to access. This is commonly used for premium content, membership podcasts, paid subscriber feeds, or private/internal podcasts.

Note: For new setups, we recommend using Podcast Channels for private or premium podcast feeds. Post-Type Podcasting is considered a legacy option and is only available to users who previously enabled it.

How Premium Podcasting Works in PowerPress

PowerPress can password protect custom podcast feeds created with Podcast Channels. Once a feed is protected, listeners must enter a valid WordPress username and password to access it.

PowerPress includes a default role called Premium Subscriber and a default capability called Premium Content. These can be used to control which WordPress users have access to your private podcast feed.

Not familiar with WordPress roles and capabilities? Use the default Premium Subscriber role for listeners and the default Premium Content capability for your protected feed.

Important Limitations

The main default podcast feed and category feeds cannot be fully protected. For this reason, PowerPress only allows premium podcasting on custom podcast feeds, such as Podcast Channels.

Important: Private podcast feeds should not be submitted to public podcast directories. If you want to promote your premium podcast, consider publishing a free public feed with previews, short versions, or sample episodes.

How to Enable Premium Podcasting

  1. In your WordPress dashboard, go to PowerPress > Podcast Channels.
  2. Create a new podcast channel or edit an existing custom channel.
  3. Open the channel settings and go to the Other section.
  4. Find Password Protect Podcast Channel and enable it.
  5. Select the capability required to access the feed. For most users, this should be Premium Content.
  6. Save your changes.

Giving Listeners Access

After enabling password protection for the podcast channel, assign access to the users who should be able to subscribe.

  1. Go to Users in your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Create a new user or edit an existing user.
  3. Set the user’s role to Premium Subscriber.
  4. Save the user profile.

The listener can then use their WordPress username and password to access the protected podcast feed in a compatible podcast app.

Using Membership Plugins

You can manage premium podcast access manually in WordPress, or you can use a membership plugin to automate signups, payments, and user access.

Membership plugins may be useful if you want listeners to sign up, pay, and automatically receive access to your private podcast feed.

Common membership plugins that may work with PowerPress include:

  • MemberPress
  • Paid Memberships Pro
  • WooCommerce membership-related extensions
  • S2Member
  • WishList Member
Important: Blubrry Support can help with PowerPress settings, but we cannot provide support for third-party membership plugin setup or troubleshooting. Please contact the plugin developer for help with membership plugin issues.

Podcast App Compatibility

Support for private podcast feeds varies by podcast app. Many podcast apps support password-protected feeds, but some platforms require podcasts to be publicly listed and may not support private feed authentication.

If a listener has trouble adding a private feed, have them try a podcast app that supports authenticated RSS feeds.

Post-Type Podcasting Legacy Note

Older PowerPress setups may still use Post-Type Podcasting for premium podcast feeds. This option is considered legacy and is no longer available for new setups.

Note: If your site already uses Post-Type Podcasting for premium feeds, those existing settings may still be available. For new premium podcast setups, use Podcast Channels instead.