San Francisco, Sep 16 (IANS): Amazon Music on Wednesday launched podcasts in the US, UK, Germany, and Japan, across its subscription and ad-supported tiers of service at no additional cost.

For the first time, customers will be able to stream top podcasts they already know and love, as well as new, original shows produced exclusively for Amazon Music and hosted by creators including DJ Khaled, Becky G, Will Smith, Dan Patrick, and more, Amazon Music said.

"Our customers' listening habits are constantly evolving, and we know they're looking to us to provide them with a rich experience rooted in music and entertainment," Steve Boom, Vice President of Amazon Music, said in a statement.

"With this launch, we're bringing customers even more forms of entertainment to enjoy, while enabling creators to reach new audiences globally, just as we've done with music streaming.

"Podcasts, paired with our recent partnership with Twitch to bring live streaming into the app, makes Amazon Music a premiere destination for creators," Boom added.

Popular shows such as "Crime Junkie", "What A Day" and "Stuff You Should Know" are available now, and millions of episodes from top shows will be added, Amazon Music said.

Amazon Music will also soon be the exclusive home of the music-meets-true-crime podcast, "Disgraceland", a show exploring the criminal antics and connections of some of the world's favourite musicians, from the Rolling Stones to Tupac.

Amazon Music has also partnered with creators to produce original, exclusive podcasts.

Podcasts are now available to stream on all tiers of Amazon Music, including free access on Echo, web, and in the Amazon Music mobile app.