Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has announced its plans to launch a new integrated video podcast experience on its Apple Podcasts app this spring.

Eddy Cue, Senior Vice President of Services at Apple, revealed that the new feature is designed to empower creators with control over their content and business models, while also enhancing the user experience by making it easier to switch between audio and video podcasts. The update will introduce picture-in-picture support and enable users to download video episodes for offline viewing.Although Apple Podcasts has supported video via RSS since 2005, the new update will add support for HLS (HTTP Live Streaming), Apple's own streaming protocol, enabling adaptive playback and improved in-app video controls.The HLS format will support dynamic video ad insertion, allowing creators to add video ads through participating hosts and ad networks. While Apple won't charge for content distribution, it will collect an impression-based fee from ...