RAIN Notes: Tuesday, October 31
Month: October 2023
Radio beats TV: Audacy describes an audio blueprint for advertisers
Media giant Audacy has released a “State of Audio” PDF presentation called “Level Up.” It evangelizes the benefits, formats, and best practices of audio advertising, and fashions itself a “Modern Blueprint.” Click for a sampling of details, graphics, and a download link. Continue Reading
For all its gains, podcasting still in early catch-up (IAB part 2)
Part 2 in our coverage of the IAB’s Podcast Advertising Revenue Study, a mid-cycle supplement to the annual report which comes out each spring. This portion analyzes trends and recommendations related to programmatic ad buying, show-based vs. audience-based campaigns, and the need to develop revenue in video podcasting. Continue Reading
Buyers dig deeper as podcast advertising matures: IAB report
Podcasting has grown more than twice as fast as total internet ad revenue, a remarkable metric among many in this data-intense report from the IAB. Part 1 of RAIN’s coverage. Click for latest trends in revenue, ad type, delivery mechanisms, and campaign types. Illustrated with IAB graphs. Continue Reading
RAIN Notes: Thursday, October 26
Spotify Q3 details & quotes: Users, Podcasts, Audiobooks
Spotify released Q3 earnings this week. We covered basic money metrics elsewhere. In this post, we scrutinize information gleaned from the earnings call. Below, three main topics: User growth, podcasting, and the audiobooks initiative. Audiobooks were of particular interest to investors, partly because it was difficult to coax financial predictions about them. Click for lots of detail and quotes. Continue Reading
Podcasts & streaming music gain share in Q3 “Share of Ear” (Edison Research)
In the Q3 edition of Share of Ear, an Edison Research subscription product, podcasts gained a point to reach an all-time high of 11%. That’s the percentage of all daily time spent with audio among people age 13 and over in the U.S. AM/FM radio listening also gained a point. Click for details and the graphic. Continue Reading
Spotify ‘super excited’ over ‘stellar’ Q3. Profit attained.
Spotify’s Q3 earnings report gave the investor audience upbeat news and validation that the strategic adjustment made earlier in the fiscal year are working as hoped. Expenses down; user growth up. And … profit for the first time as a public company. Continue Reading
Consumers open to audio ads, and are sensitive to brand suitability (IAS study)
As part of a larger research series, Integral Ad Science (IAS) conducted a survey of 1,158 digital audio listeners in the U.S. to understand how consumers perceive and interact with advertising on digital audio platforms. The survey, called The Sound of Suitability, was fielded in June. A key focus is “brand suitability” — safe and dangerous advertising choices based on consumer responses to “risky” and “safe” ad types. Click for details, charts, and the download link. Continue Reading
Audacy asserts the star-making power of radio with “Launch” program
Audacy has started an artist discovery and promotion project called Launch, intending to boost careers of selected musicians. Three beneficiaries are selected. Continue Reading
Quill’s CoHost unit launches Prefix, a platform-agnostic audience insights tool
Podcast agency Quill announces a new data tool attached to CoHost, its analytics and audience insights platform. It can deliver audience demographics and B2B analytics describing companies which are listening to a podcast. Click for the details of this interesting piece of tech. Continue Reading
James Cridland’s International Radio Trends: Better user interfaces in cars change radio listening
by James Cridland
In his latest piece, guest columnist James Cridland notes an odd finding from Edison Research’s Share of Ear study: “AM/FM is still the #1 audio source; but total listening goes down by a third. Everything else – music streaming, podcasts – doubles.” It’s a user-experience (UX) effect, James claims: “Make it simpler to listen to other things, and people will.” He emphasizes the shared experience and human connection of radio. Also, interesting corporate manoeuvrings in Australia. And more. Continue Reading