Gervais smells the money and abandons Guardian

Ricky Gervais has abandoned his free podcast experiment with Guardian Unlimited in favour of a paid deal with Audible.co.uk.

In a recent podcast, Gervais said: "I have been a fool" for offering it for free.

“The podcasts have been attracting some high profile fans such as Matt Groening, creator of the Simpsons, Christopher Guest from Spinal Tap, JJ Abrahams, creator of Alias and Lost, and even Jonathan Ive, inventor of the iPod." he said.

“I find it hard to imagine what these living legends must think when they hear the ramblings of that little bald–headed Manc, Karl Pilkington.”

From 28 February users can download the four episodes of The Ricky Gervais Show series two for £3.75 from Audible or from the iTunes store. Individual shows are 95p each and the whole first series is £2.75.

The first series of 12 half-hour shows on Guardian Unlimited recorded nearly three million downloads and put Mr Gervais in the Guinness Book of Records for the most downloaded podcast. In the light of that, Mr Gervais jokingly lamented giving his show away for free in a recent podcast, in which he said: "I have been a fool."

• Scotsman.com this week announced a new video podcast, believed to be the first from a UK newspaper. The site hopes that the format will eventually provide a new revenue stream through advertising and sponsorship.

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