Comprehensive coverage of the podcasting industry and its business ecosystem.
NPR unleashed its Podcast Report Winter 2021. This interesting document is a combined growth report, best practices manifesto, and case study. Click through for details and a link to the free report. Continue Reading
In a venture to encourage kid-friendly podcasts, PRX has launched Ready To Learn, an accelerator program for producers who have the same goal. It’s a 16-week training course, and five production teams will be accepted. Winning teams get $10,000 plus travel expenses. Click through for details and the application website. Continue Reading
WNYC Studios’ Radiolab has been honored with two Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards. One is for the serialized series The Other Latif and the other is for The Flag and the Fury. It’s not the first time WNYC has been recognized by duPont-Columbia. Continue Reading
iHeartRadio is announcing the launch of iHeart 3D Audio, using binaural recording and production techniques. The company will debut a new slate of podcasts in this new category of experiential media — Aaron Mahnke will be involved in that effort. Bonus episodes of The Ron Burgundy Podcast will also be created in 3D mode. Click through for a link to a demo reel. Continue Reading
The buzz and activity surrounding Clubhouse, a new audio social app for chatting and meetings, indicate an appetite for social audio experiences. Reports are swirling about a looming, well-funded competitor called Fireside, reportedly co-founded by Mark Cuban. Click through for what we know now, and perspective on a growing category. Continue Reading
Following a tradition of weekly radio addresses started by Franklin D. Roosevelt, revivied by Reagan, and carried forward in different forms by other chief executives, President Biden has launched a weekly communication series. It won’t be on the radio, though — a White House spokesperson told Engadget that Biden’s weekly chat with Americans will be “where people are.” (That has to feel insulting to radio, especially considering radio’s 93% reach.) So … what is this thing? Continue Reading
Chartable released its latest podcast report which details 2020 measurements and makes a few general predictions for 2021. Overall, the data and tone of the report are bullish. Click through for details, graphics, and a (free) link to the report. Continue Reading
Wondery founder Hernan Lopez announced that Apple TV+ is set to produce We Crashed, an adaptation of Wondery’s podcast WeCrashed: The Rise and Fall of WeWork. The limited run series will star Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway. It will be produced by Apple Studios. Continue Reading
Podcast Radio, the UK DAB+ venture which programs podcasts 24/7, has notified us of a new and original fiction podcast starring former BBC announcer Patrick Muirhead. The show is described as “a series of fictional mystery stories set in the remote tropical island paradise of Seychelles where [Muirhead] now lives.” It is the second original podcast produced by Podcast Radio. Continue Reading
by Steve Goldstein
In this guest column, Steve Goldstein lists major sponsors of Tom Brady’s first Super Bowl in 2002. “Great brands and shows iterate to stay relevant,” Goldstein says, and that’s how this fun and interesting column relates to podcasting.
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“2020 was the year none of us could have imagined,” New York Times CEO Meredith Kopit Levien said, and noted “an unending hunger for relief from it all.” Some business relief came from the NYT’s podcast performance — that unit delivered $36M in revenue, up from $7M in 2019. “”We expect podcast revenue growth to be strong into 2021,” she predicted. Click through for much more. Continue Reading
Acast is sending around a brag-worthy announcement that its programmatic ad sales for podcasting grew 215% last year. This disclosure might be viewed as validation of programmatic in an industry where ad revenue has historically been based on bespoke performances of commercials by hosts while recording the show. The company projects 10% of 2021 revenue will derive from programmatic.
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