Blubrry Sends One Video to Apple Podcasts—and Audio Apps Get MP3

On September 2, 2026, Blubrry made a new workflow available to hosting customers who publish through Blubrry Publisher: one uploaded MP4 becomes HLS video for Apple Podcasts, while Blubrry also retains the original video and generates an MP3 for audio-focused apps. The company’s September 2 launch announcement says the three formats are associated with one episode in a single RSS feed; shows published through the PowerPress plugin are not eligible at launch.

The workflow was available through Publisher from September 2, rather than being a preview of a future release. Podnews’ independent report that day also recorded the release of Blubrry’s Apple Podcasts HLS support and the inclusion of HLS and the original video in an alternate enclosure for compatible apps.

One MP4 produces three available formats

The creator-facing process begins with a single MP4 upload in Blubrry Publisher. Blubrry prepares a 1080p HLS version for Apple Podcasts, preserves the uploaded video file and derives an MP3 audio version. Processing must finish before the episode becomes watchable in Apple Podcasts.

1. The creator uploads an MP4 episode through Blubrry Publisher.
2. Blubrry prepares the HLS presentation, retains the original MP4 and generates an MP3.
3. The three resources remain associated with the same episode and RSS feed.
4. Apple Podcasts uses HLS; other apps can select HLS, the original video or the MP3 according to their format support.

The fallback does not create a second, separately managed audio episode. It gives an audio-focused app an MP3 resource for the existing episode. The title, description and other episode information therefore do not have to be published again in a parallel audio feed.

That distinction also limits the promise in the headline: Blubrry generates the MP3, but the receiving app decides which supported resource it will use. The same episode can consequently appear as video in Apple Podcasts, audio in an audio-only client or video in another app that recognizes one of the supplied video formats.

HLS adapts playback to the connection

HTTP Live Streaming does not deliver the episode solely as one fixed video download. It divides the video into segments and makes multiple quality levels available, allowing the player to change the selected stream as network conditions change.

Apple’s HLS video specification and launch details say Apple Podcasts adjusts quality automatically across Wi-Fi and cellular connections. Apple also supports switching between watching and audio-only playback, video downloads for offline viewing and dynamic video advertising through participating providers and ad networks.

The adaptation occurs during delivery rather than producing a different editorial cut for each device. A constrained connection can receive a lower-quality stream, while a stronger connection can use a higher-quality variant without another upload from the creator. The generated MP3 serves a different purpose: compatibility with listening environments that do not use the available video presentation.

The RSS feed remains the show’s metadata source

Apple’s video path does not replace the podcast’s main RSS feed. The feed continues to carry the show and episode metadata, while the Apple Podcasts integration gives the platform access to the HLS presentation prepared by the hosting provider.

This is why one episode can produce different experiences without becoming separate editions. Apple Podcasts can present video and audio-only modes on one show page, while another app can read the same episode and choose a resource it supports. Followers do not need to locate a duplicate video show, and creators do not need to maintain parallel audio and video episode records for this workflow.

The connection to Apple is nevertheless more than an ordinary MP4 enclosure. An eligible customer must connect Apple Podcasts Connect to Blubrry, generate the required API key and upload that key file in the Blubrry dashboard. The authorization lets the hosting provider deliver the Apple-specific video presentation while routine metadata stays under the creator’s existing feed workflow.

Publisher qualifies; PowerPress remains outside the release

The decisive eligibility question is where the feed is published. The release covers Blubrry hosting customers using Blubrry Publisher. A show whose feed is generated through the WordPress-based PowerPress plugin does not gain the one-upload HLS workflow merely because its media is stored with Blubrry.

• Blubrry Publisher with Blubrry hosting: included in the current release.
• PowerPress-published feed: excluded from the HLS workflow at launch.
• Apple connection: requires authorization through an Apple Podcasts Connect API key.
• Non-Apple destinations: their own format support determines whether they use HLS, the original MP4 or the generated MP3.

PowerPress users can continue publishing through WordPress as before; the exclusion concerns this new conversion and delivery path, not the continued operation of PowerPress feeds. Switching to Publisher would change which tool creates and manages the feed, so it is not equivalent to enabling a video setting inside an existing PowerPress setup.

Blubrry’s release gives no timetable for PowerPress support and does not provide a universal compatibility table for non-Apple podcast apps. The current boundary is therefore specific: Publisher customers can use the integrated MP4-to-HLS-and-MP3 workflow now, while PowerPress-published shows remain outside it and other apps choose among the supplied formats according to their capabilities.

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