Meghan Markle and Prince Harry suffer $20million income loss as business deal axed
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle take part in an International Women's Day event at Millennium Point in Birmingham
PA
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have suffered a $20million financial blow after a business deal with a streaming giant collapsed.
Swedish streaming service Spotify will not renew its contract with the Sussexes for the couple's Archetypes podcast.
The audio company will instead begin to make changes and revamp its output.
Spotify and the Sussexes' audio production company Archewell Audio issued a joint statement on Thursday night confirming the end of the deal.
Meghan Markle released a dozen Spotify episodes
PAThe statement said: "Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series that we made together."
Meghan and Harry, who stepped back from the Royal Family in January 2020, reportedly signed a $20million deal with Spotify in late 2020.
However, the Sussexes have been accused of failing to meet the productivity benchmark required to receive the full pay-out.
The couple produced 12 episodes from August 2022.
The Spotify App is shown in an Apple iPad mini
PA
Guests included tennis star Serena Williams and American singer Mariah Carey.
Despite being axed by Spotify, Archetypes won the top podcast award at the People's Choice Award in Los Angeles in December.
Meghan said at the time: "I loved digging my hands into the process, sitting up late at night in bed, working on the writing and creative.
"And I loved digging deep into meaningful conversation with my diverse and inspiring guests, laughing and learning with them. It has been such a labour of love."
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's audio production company released a joint statement with the Swedish streaming service
PAThe Duchess of Sussex is expected to continue to create content on another platform.
The talent agency that recently signed Meghan, WME, told The Wall Street Journal: "The team behind Archetypes remain proud of the podcast they created at Spotify.
"Meghan is continuing to develop more content for the Archetypes audience on another platform."
The decision to part ways also comes after Spotify announced last week that it would cut 200 jobs from its podcast division after a period of heavy investment.