Meghan Markle releases statement as £15m Spotify podcast receives award

The awards are organised by the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation in the US.

In a statement shared on the Archewell Foundation website, Meghan said: "Thank you to the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation for this prestigious honour.

"This is a shared success for me and the team behind Archetypes – most of whom are women – and the inspiring guests who joined me each week."

It comes as Spotify is reducing the headcount by around six per cent with around 600 jobs being axed.

In January it was announced that Dawn Ostroff, who was responsible for leading the negotiations on Meghan and Harry's three year-deal with Spotify which is worth an estimated £15million, had left the company.

Spotify CEO, Ek said that Ostroff, the streaming company's chief content and advertising officer had "decided to depart Spotify".

The restructuring will see Ostroff's role merged into the role of chief business officer.

Ek stated that the move would ensure "efficiency, cost controls and speed up decision-making".

Spotify has invested more than £810million in building out its podcast business which currently has more than four million titles but that has eroded its gross margins.

The company also spent a whopping £162million on securing Joe Rogan's podcast on a multi-year deal.

Earlier this year, Spotify CEO Ek said: “In hindsight, I probably got a little carried away and over-invested relative to the uncertainty we saw shaping up in the market."

He added: "I was too ambitious in investing ahead of our revenue growth."

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry signed their deal with Spotify in late 2020.

The Duchess of Sussex released a podcast series in 2022 named 'Archetypes with Meghan'.

The series has 12 episodes and includes guest appearances from Serena Williams, Mariah Carey and Paris Hilton.

Spotify describes Archetypes with Meghan as "a podcast where we investigate, dissect, and subvert the labels that try to hold women back."