Podcast company Acast joins Triton Digital’s a2x programmatic platform

triton digital and acast 204wTriton Digital announced that Swedish podcast company Acast has joined Triton’s a2x programmatic advertising platform. It is the first reported time that podcast ad inventory is available programmatically. The announcement marks another step in the fast-moving evolution of podcasting as a mature audio category.

Acast is a podcast hosting and monetization platform with unique technology under the hood which allows extensions such as videos, images, and links to be embedded in audio programs. For the programmatic piece, Acast is putting its mobile pre-roll inventory into a2x.

John Rosso, President of Market Development at Triton digital, emphasized the breakthrough aspect of the agreement: “We are thrilled to partner with Acast to bring this significant new channel to the programmatic marketplace and provide advertisers with an opportunity to connect with an untapped audience in a new and meaningful way.”

Features of programmatic advertising, such as speed and efficiency, represent a clear difference from traditional podcast advertising characterized by curated, custom-sold campaigns. During the podcast resurgence of the past 18 months, the ads which typically populate podcasts are host-read testimonials for direct-response product companies, often based online. Website-building service Squarespace has become known as a leading, nearly ubiquitous podcast advertiser.

Programmatic buying opens the door to advertisers who might want to affiliate with the podcast listening audience generally, but with more traditional pre-recorded spots and speedier transactions.

Ross Adams, UK Country Manager at Acast, sees advantages. “It means that for the first time ad space can be bought in podcasts using digital metrics with targeting options, something that has never been available before. The ability to finally target by location and scale programmatically, in the podcast market, has now finally been solved.”

Brad Hill