Apple is reportedly preparing a notable upgrade for Apple Podcasts in iOS 26.4. Based on a 9to5Mac report highlighted by IT Home, the update redesigns how podcast feeds handle video, letting creators publish video and traditional audio together from the same subscription feed instead of splitting formats across separate listings.
That change could make the app much easier to use. Rather than subscribing to one version of a show for audio and another for video, listeners would be able to stay in a single feed and choose whether they want to watch or just listen. In practical terms, it makes video podcasts feel less like a side feature and more like a native part of the platform.
Podcast host Stephen Robles has already demonstrated the system through TransistorFM with his shows Primary Technology and Movies on the Side. According to the report, users running the iOS 26.4 release candidate can switch between audio and video versions of those programs without friction inside the same experience.
Apple also appears to be opening a new revenue path for creators. The report says dynamic ad insertion, including host-read ads, is being introduced for the first time in this enhanced video podcast setup. The idea is to give publishers broader monetization options while still keeping their creative control over the show itself.
Apple reportedly won’t charge creators or hosting platforms that continue distributing podcasts through traditional RSS or HLS video delivery. Later this year, though, the company is expected to charge a standard impression fee to ad networks that participate in HLS video dynamic ad insertion. That makes this update important not just for listeners, but for the business side of podcast publishing too.
Compatibility is another notable detail. Apple says the improved video experience works on iPhone, iPad, Apple Vision Pro, and the web. Mac and Apple TV, at least for now, are left out of the first wave. If Apple ships iOS 26.4 this week as expected, more creators and hosting platforms should soon start testing what this new version of Apple Podcasts can actually do.
