RAIN Notes: Friday, August 27
Jottings of Note
— DIY (Steven Bartlett)
— Ranker (Triton Digital)
— Tackling a Podcast (Jay Cutler)
News
Spotify offers subscription publishing to all U.S. podcasters, in direct competition with Apple
Bringing an end to a testing period begun in April, Spotify now allows any U.S. podcaster to offer a subscription feed to listeners. It’s the latest benchmark in a growing trend of pay-to-listen in podcasting, where consumers can buy into a monthly fee for membership benefits that include ad-free listening, bonus exclusive episodes, and other attractions. Click for details. Continue Reading
TuneCore elevates new CEO from within as Scott Ackerman completes exit
We learned in March that Scott Ackerman would step down from his eight-year CEO role at TuneIn. Today we know who is succeeding him — it is Andreea Gleeson. She, like Ackerman before her, is elevated from within the company where she leaves behind her role as Chief Revenue Officer. Click for details. Continue Reading
Digital distro company Symphonic expands to vinyl with Qrates partnership
Tokyo-based Qrates, a vinyl record service company, is announcing a partnership with digital distributor Symphonic Distribution. Qrates services the creation, distribution, financing, and consumer discovery of vinyl — a small but persistently growing segment of the recorded music industry. Continue Reading
RAIN Notes: Tuesday, August 24
Jottings of Note
— Messy Leaks (Spotify)
— Brotherhood (Instreamatic)
— Chasing the Moon (Podchaser)
Second annual The Next Great Podcast contest launches from iHeartRadio and Dan Patrick
Part incubator and part contest, The Next Great Podcast is beginning its second annual installation, produced by renowned sports journalist Dan Patrick with iHeartRadio. The end product will be a newly launched podcast with all the advantages of major network backing. Last year’s winner just launched this month — it is original and entertaining. Click for all the details. Continue Reading
A new magazine (yes, print) for podcast transcripts
Podcast transcripts can be especially helpful as companion pieces to long-form interview podcasts. The Australian-based Dialogues Media Foundation is betting on a market for transcripts, and has launched a hybrid print/digital monthly magazine. Continue Reading
AM/FM listening via streaming reaches new high (Edison Research)
AM/FM radio has reached a new high — of listening off-radio. Listening via streaming is now 12% of American radio listening (13 years and older). That carve-out is the highest ever established in the ongoing Share of Ear study by Edison Research. Continue Reading
RAIN Notes: Monday, August 23
Jottings of Note
— 10-million Redemptions (Michel Cohen)
— Marvelous (Crooked Media)
— Executive Hire (TuneCore)
New advertisers crack Magellan Top 15; Jelmar is top “Mover & Shaker”
In Magellan AI’s latest monthly report of top podcast advertisers, tracking July activity, we see many of the same brands that have populated the Top 15 Spenders list for the last several months. We compare the past four monthly reports to identify newcomers — there are only two amid lots of repeaters. Click for details and charts. Continue Reading
LiSTNR promotes music curator; grabs another from YouTube
LiSTNR, the audio app from Southern Cross Austereo (SCA), the Australian entertainment company, has announced an executive appointment and new hire, both intended to burnish the music playlists furnished in the apps. ONe is a promotion; the other music curation expert comes to the company from YouTube Australia and New Zealand. Continue Reading
Top 15 podcast networks unchanged in Triton Digital July report
Triton Digital released its U.S. Podcast Report for July, ranking top podcast networks and shows. In the Top 15 Networks ranker based on average weekly downloads, there are no additions to last month’s report. The Top Podcasts list is also overwhelmingly the same shows with some shifting of order. Click for details. Continue Reading