Podtrac coronavirus tracking: New high for downloads; upward spike for comedy

Podtrac sent us the latest weekly update of U.S. podcast listening, both in downloads and audience, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. (You can see everything HERE.) Podtrac also informed us that this is the last installment of its weekly COVID-19 tracking. “Things are getting back to normal on a weekly basis,” CEO Mark McCrery told RAIN. Continue Reading

Stitcher releases 10-year podcast report; we talk with Erik Diehn in a popup podcast

Content and distribution powerhouse Stitcher has released a report of observations and measurements over 10 years of delivering podcasts to listeners. It is a unique glimpse into listener behavior from a pioneering podcast company. We also spoke with CEO Erik Diehn for a popup podcast. Click through to read and listen. Continue Reading

Opportunities and challenges for radio (MIDiA Research)

In an encompassing and deeply researched report, UK-based MIDiA Research has produced a manifesto for broadcast radio, laying out challenges and opportunities for the future. Titled Radio is Switched On Again: Strategies for 2020 and Beyond, the densely-packed 24-page document is for subscribers only, but MIDiA kindly sent a copy to RAIN News for review. Continue Reading

Weekly podcast listeners skew away from AM/FM during coronavirus, and Joe Rogan rules (Edison)

The most actively engaged podcast listeners — people who listen at least weekly — are, as a group, falling away from AM/FM listening to an extent, and also streaming internet radio. This is one result of an Edison Research survey, as described by SVP Tom Webster in a webinar. Edison also displayed a top-1o list of podcasts with the greatest reach. Guess which is #1 — by a big margin. Continue Reading

Audience Insights broadens scope and becomes Signal Hill Insights

Toronto research company Audience Insights is enlarging the scope of its research and consulting, and changing its brand to Signal Hill Insights. The main thrust of the company’s expanded mission appears to be a widening of focus. While Audience Insights provided intelligence to advertisers, Signal Hill Insights will also work on monetization issues for publishers. Click for specifics. Continue Reading

Podtrac coronavirus tracking: Continuing recovery of reach and downloads

Podtrac sent us the latest weekly update of U.S. podcast listening, both in downloads and audience, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. (You can see everything HERE.) Its latest data is for the week of May 11 – May 17. The happy news for the podcast industry is that with this week’s metrics, Podtrac’s view of the industry shows steady recovery from a Covid-19 low point in the week ending April 13. Continue Reading