Amazon.com today officially launched the Amazon Podcasts network, an original podcast offering that features four channels of free content: Amazon BookClips, Music You Should Hear, Significant Seven and Amazon Wire.

The company expects to offer several additional channels in the coming months to meet its customers’ increasing demand for rich content related to the products they shop. Each podcast is available via streaming and download from Amazon.com, and through RSS and iTunes. Amazon Wire is also available on TiVo.

The announcement highlights the growing importance of podcasting for reaching the growing population of people that use the Internet as a primary source of information and entertainment.

“Amazon Podcasts offers customers exclusive content and interviews they won‚Äôt find anywhere else,” said Amazon’s Kristi Coulter. “Listeners can get more exclusive information about the artists, authors and actors they love.”

The Amazon Podcast network launches with four channels of free content, including:

• Amazon BookClips ‚Äì A weekly podcast offering customers a free sneak peek at some of the most popular soon-to-be-released audiobooks. Upcoming titles include ‚ÄúEinstein‚Äù by Walter Isaacson and ‚ÄúI Heard That Song Before‚Äù by Mary Higgins Clark, plus an exclusive, advance preview of Janet Evanovich‚Äôs ‚ÄúLean Mean 13.‚Äù
• Music You Should Hear ‚Äì A free, weekly MP3 podcast whereby customers receive an MP3 recording featuring complete songs from developing and indie artists, selected by Amazon‚Äôs music editors. Upcoming episodes will include music from Jenny Owen Youngs, Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter, Menomena, Ryan Shaw and more.
• Significant Seven ‚Äì A monthly podcast in which book editors from Amazon.com talk about seven of the most exciting upcoming books before they are released. Each book featured in the Significant Seven will be discounted 40 percent for a limited time.
• Amazon Wire ‚Äì An exclusive, biweekly podcast featuring interviews with some of today‚Äôs hottest authors, actors, directors and musicians. In the coming weeks, Amazon Wire will feature Ralph Nader, John Malkovich and Dolores O‚ÄôRiordan.
  Amazon Wire launches today with a large library of previously recorded content from popular personalities such as personal finance guru Suze Orman, bestselling authors Michael Crichton and Khaled Hosseini, Grammy Award-winning artist Sting, “Saturday Night Live” creator Lorne Michaels and Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh. Other popular guests include Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, Kirk Douglas, Wes Craven, Madeleine Albright, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Joss Stone.

Subscribers with a broadband-connected TiVo Series2 or Series3 DVR can access a host of online services that deliver timely entertainment and information directly to the television set, now including Amazon Wire. These services can be found under the Music, Photos, Products and More folder on your TiVo box.

“TiVo is consistently looking to provide its subscribers with new and innovative content, and we are excited to further our relationship with Amazon,” said Jim Denney, TiVo’s vice president of product marketing.

Amazon.com will post information about upcoming Amazon Wire interviews and solicit customer questions before recording the interview, giving listeners a unique opportunity to interact with their favorite stars.

Amazon BookClips also features an archive of content, including “Sunday Morning in Plains” by Jimmy Carter, “Plum Lovin” by Janet Evanovich, “The Sweet Potato Queens’ First Big-Ass Novel” by Jill Conner Browne and “The Gospel According to Judas” by Benjamin Iscariot.

The Music You Should Hear archive currently features songs from Grinderman (Nick Cave’s new band), former Velocity Girl singer Sarah Shannon, Kelly Sweet, Angelique Kidjo, Mavis Staples and others.

Source: Amazon