Himalaya is a platform for podcasters to create podcasts, connect, and share content with their fans. When podcast creators use Himalaya, they can gain support from their listeners and interact with the podcast community like never before.

The first thing I noticed when I looked at the Himalaya website was a bright red-orange button that said “Claim Your Show”. This is never a good sign. It indicates that Himalaya has gone ahead and added podcasts to itself without bothering to contact any of the podcasts hosts first. To me, this feels dishonest.

Want to find out if your podcast is already on Himalaya? You can search for it on the “Find Your Show” part of the Himalaya website.

Neither of the solo podcasts I do are there. My solo shows are not on iTunes. They just exist on my website. However, two other podcasts that I am involved in are on Himalaya. Both of those are on iTunes. From this, it appears that Himalaya is adding shows from iTunes.

If you do a search for your podcast on the Himalaya website, and it is not there, you can contact them to have it added. It is not clear how to contact them if you would like your show removed. There is no information about whether or not Himalaya links back to the podcast’s actual feed.

Himalaya is an app that can be downloaded for free from the App Store or Google Play. According to the information on Himalaya’s FAQ, the only way a podcast’s listeners can send money through Himalaya is to download the Himalaya app.

Personally, I see this as a limitation. If none of your listeners want to download the Himalaya app, then you cannot possibly make any money via Himalaya. To me, it sounds like a podcaster would have to use up some of their show time doing advertising for the Himalaya app before they could potentially make any money from it.

Let’s suppose, for a minute, that each and every one of your listeners decides to download the Himalaya app and that all of them start giving you tips through it. In order to get paid, you would have to submit your PayPal information to Himalaya. Podcasters get paid on a monthly basis. It is unclear if Himalaya takes a cut or not.

Personally, I’m not going to use Himalaya. It troubles me when companies add people’s podcasts to their website or app without asking permission from the podcasters first. It is situations like this one that make me avoid putting my solo podcasts on iTunes. I expect Himalaya is going to face some backlash from podcasters who are not happy to have their shows secretly added to Himalaya.