Subscribe to podcasts on the calendar app with PodCal
PodCal is a free experiment in podcast accessibility, by PodLP. Subscribe in the Calendar app on macOS and iOS, in Google Calendar on Android and Web, or in any calendar app!
How it works
PodCal is remarkably simple, simply subscribe to any podcast using the following link: https://id.podcal.app/{itunes_id}.ics and replace {itunes_id} with the iTunes ID for the podcast. For example, the link to subscribe to Planet Money is https://id.podcal.app/290783428.ics. Calendar events are created for each episode, starting on the publish date and time.
Instructions
Apple Calendar (iOS): Click “Calendars” > “Add Calendar” > “Add Subscription Calendar,” then provide the URL above Apple Calendar (macOS): File > “New Calendar Subscription,” then provide the URL above Google Calendar: Go to calendar.google.com > “Other calendars” > “+” > “From URL,” then provide the URL above
Why build PodCal?
PodCal is an experiment in podcast accessibility. The iCalendar format has been around for more than two decades. Nearly every device, from Blackberries to modern iPhones, support iCalendar subscriptions. Moreover, a calendar and podcast app are surprisingly similar. Both apps poll for updates periodically from a time-series file format (.ics files for calendar apps, .rss files for podcast apps). Because of its ubiquity, iCalendar has the potential to take podcasts to places never seen before like ultra-budget flip phones and old school PDAs.
Behind the scenes
Under the hood, PodCal reformats RSS feeds on-the-fly and returns a properly formatted iCalendar file. It’s smart enough to add or remove proprietary properties based on the requesting device. No feeds are saved to disk. The iTunes ID to RSS feed lookup is done using data provided by the Podcast Index.
Feedback
We’d love to hear how you’re using PodCal! Report bugs or offer suggestion at support@podlp.com.
About PodLP
PodLP is the podcast app for the next billion listeners. available on KaiOS smart feature phones on the KaiStore and JioStore. As of November 2023, PodLP has been installed on more than 10 million devices in nearly every country. Learn more at PodLP.com.