Comprehensive coverage of the podcasting industry and its business ecosystem.
by Steve Goldstein
In this guest column, Steve Goldstein delivers a list of eye-catching, thought-provoking stats from the podcast realm. As far as we can tell, not a single one is April Foolery.
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Audacy, the new branding of both Entercom radio group and its RADIO.COM listening app, is pushing its new identity into the public sphere today by announcing the two new podcasts from subsidiary Pineapple Street Studios. The shows will enjoy exclusive full-series binge listening on Audacy, while outside podcast apps will distribute normal RSS feeds on a weekly cadence. Continue Reading
Libsyn, one of the world’s largest podcast hosting companies, announces today that it will acquire AdvertiseCast, a podcast ad planning and buying platform. The purchase is supported by $25-million in funds that the publicly traded company raised privately. While this funding is apparently motivated chiefly to enable the AdvertiseCast purchase, the investment is also intended “to provide Libsyn with additional capital for other strategic acquisitions.” Continue Reading
Today global podcast platform Acast makes public Acast+, a suite of tools giving podcasts ways of offering subscriptions to their shows as aternatives (or additions) to ad-funded shows. With Acast+, podcasters can offer ad-free streams, exclusive content, early access and much more to paying subscribers. Continue Reading
NPR announces the finalists in the netwrok’s most recent Student Podcast Challenge, targeted to college students for the first time. Fascinatingly, the contest intersected the Covid pandemic, a collision might have given students more time to focus on audio projects, and definitely influenced the content. Click through for links to each submission for listening. Continue Reading
New podcasts of note.
The Rock Podcast (PodcastOne)
Crushed(Religion of Sports / PRX)
No Kidding? Me Too! (KMG Utopia Studios)
Podcast ad-rep company True Native Media has hired three new account executives, doubling the firm’s staff, Founder/CEO Heather Osgood announced. “Today is a huge milestone,” she said, noting that the expansion is happening merely six months after founding the company, and without external funding. Continue Reading
New podcasts of note.
The Path HERE (Scott Savlov)
Takeline (Crooked Media)
Minnie Questions with Minnie Driver (iHeartRadio)
Will Packer Media is entering a formal and longer-range partnership to create a slate of scripted and unscripted podcasts for iHeart. Will Packer is a Hollywood producer. James Lopez is his production partner in the Fight Night podcast, a true crime show which was placed in iHeartRadio in 2020. The first spawn of this new arrangement will be an urban drama scripted series centered in present-day Oakland, California. It is set to launch in the second quarter of 2021. Continue Reading
Podcasting attribution company Podsights has announced a $4-million fundraise from existing and new investors. Staff expansion is in the works, and the announcement includes several job listings. Also a growth chart. Continue Reading
Podcast Radio, the UK all-podcast, 24/7 radio station on the DAB platform, has informed us that Birmingham has been added to the station reach. It is Britain’s second largest city. The expansion builds on the station’s existing footprint covering London, Surry, Manchester, and Glasgow. Continue Reading
Yesterday we reported on the creation of the Media Roundtable, a new podcast industry watchdog group started by Oxford Road CEO Dan Granger. Part of its mission is to collaborate with Ad Fontes Media on a podcast bias chart that graphically positions shows in a matrix of left/right bias, and factual/fabricated content. Today we received a first version of the chart. Click through. Continue Reading