Jottings of note:
Level Of Interest
We compared Google Search queries for radio, and for podcasting, and compared the volume of each over 20 years — and found an interesting pattern. (See below.) Search queries for radio far dominated queries for podcast in 2004 — no surprise there. The delta narrowed over time starting in 2011. Today, “radio” as a search term outnumbers “podcast” by more than two to one — 24% to 10% of the 100% baseline in December, 2004. (The graph below measures the percentage of search interest, not numbers of searches.)
Our inspiration for the above comparison came from a Google results experiment from DWNLOAD Media (HERE), comparing Howard Stern search queries with Joe Rogan search queries.
Like A Gift
Spotify has delivered the 2024 edition of Spotify Wrapped, the popular annual summary of individua
l listening metrics — eagerly awaited by active users to understand their own music and podcast tastes. It is generously available to any Spotify user, paying subscriber or not. Minutes biggest listening day, number of songs played single top song and number of streams, leaderboard of top five songs, number of minutes listening to podcasts, top podcast topic, five top podcasts, “phases” (music genre concentrations during the year, number of artists listened to, single top artist (and number of minutes listening), top five artists, and a shareable summary of it all. (There is a YouTube wrap as well, called Your Recap: HERE
Another Hill Climbed
Veteran media executive and current Paramount exec Brian Lakamp has joined the Board of Directors at radio and audio behemoth Audacy. As Lakamp mentions in his announcement, Audacy enjoys a reach of 200 million consumers who listen to 220 radio stations in 45 markets, and a robust slate of podcasts. Lakamp was SVP with Sony Pictures Entertainment from 2003 to 2006, and founded MediaMaster, a service offering media backup service. For nearly seven years in the teens he held upper executive positions at iHeartMedia, and previously was named president of the pre-iHeart Clear Channel Digital in 2011. He is currently EVP, Media Supply Chain at Paramount, and sits on the UCLA School of Mathematics Chair’s Council.
Staying Current
Audio analytics and measurement company Magellan AI has achieved the latest certification for podcast measurement compliance from the IAB Tech Lab. This certifies Magellan’s adherence to the IAB’s Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines v2.2. The announcement follows a two-month auditing process. The purpose of IAB’s process is to provide the podcast industry with benchmark metrics that govern how key podcast metrics are defined and counted — those metrics include downloads, unique listeners, and ad delivery. A two-month audit certified Magellan’s compliance. ““Securing IAB Tech Lab certification demonstrates our ongoing commitment to trust, transparency, and consistency in podcast advertising measurement,” said Jim Ballas, GM Measurement at Magellan AI.
December 5, 2024
