Sky News will include ad-free listening and bonus episodes across three podcasts as part of its first paid online subscription offering.
The three shows included in Sky News Insider: Podcasts at launch will be: political podcast Electoral Dysfunction (hosted by Sky News political editor Beth Rigby), Trump 100 and new six-part series Stuff Matters from economics and data editor Ed Conway.
Other existing Sky News podcasts or new launches could be added in future.
The subscription perks will include bonus episodes, ad-free listening, early access to new series and episodes, a weekly newsletter with exclusive insight from podcast hosts, first release access for live show tickets and and access to a community forum through which people can chat with the hosts.
The subscription bundle will cost £2.99 per month and launch on 15 June.
Sky News executive chairman David Rhodes said: “Around our most-popular and trusted voices we see pent-up demand: people who want a bonus episode, the chance to interact with us and with each other, to attend an event, even to buy merch.
“This subscription lets us bring all of that together, giving listeners greater access to the journalism and talent they trust.”
Sky News is moving into paid content for the first time as part of its aim to become a “premium video-first newsroom built for the digital future”, with less of a focus on live, breaking TV news, by 2030.
Comcast committed to continue funding Sky News at the rate of around £100m a year until 2028 when it bought Sky in 2018.
Sky News said it was aiming to build on the growth of its podcasts, citing that listenership was up 102% year on year in 2025 and followers were up by more than 70% in the year to April 2026.
Sky News is also preparing to launch a paid-for app specifically for defence and security content, which was soft-launched at the London Defence Conference in April and will go live more widely in the summer.
Andy Thomson, executive director of business operations at Sky News, told Press Gazette: “We are looking at how we ultimately drive and create a long-term sustainable future for Sky News, underpinned by brilliant editorial, brilliant technology and great commercial outcomes.
“So when we think about that vision and how we show up for our audiences and our consumers, we’re quite excited about doing new, additive things that fit with the overall ethos of what we’re up to.”
Electoral Dysfunction launched in February 2024 and is hosted by Rigby, former Scottish Conservatives leader Ruth Davidson and former Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman. The trio have already sold out live shows.
Trump 100 launched on Trump’s second inauguration day in January 2025 and originally tracked developments during his first 100 days in office but has continued to follow his term beyond that. It is hosted by US correspondents James Matthews, Martha Kelner and Mark Stone.
Sky News is using podcast subscription platform Supporting Cast which also works with The Rest Is Politics producer Goalhanger, which had reached more than 250,000 paying subscribers across its network by January.
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