PRX is partnering with the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission (created by Congress) and the National Park Service, and a cast of celebrities, to create new podcasts inspired by the suffragists throughout U.S. history who have worked to secure women’s right to vote. PRX notes that 2020 is the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment. Click through for show details. Continue Reading
In a dramatic adjustment to COVID-era realities, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has planned a different sort of Podcast Upfront than in past years. First, it will be online-only. Second, it will transpire over three days rather than one day. Third, there will be more than 20 presenters, instead of 8-10 as in the past. Click through for dates, list of presenters, and other details. Continue Reading
by Jeff Umbro
In this week’s column, Podglomerate CEO Jeff Umbro offers observations and insights from the podsphere, including Stitcher, Apple, and Audible. Then, a conversation with Matt Saunders about intellectual property in podcasting, from trademarks to music licensing. Click through for much more in this content-rich column. Continue Reading
UK-based podcast network Audioboom is announcing today the acquisition of three existing podcasts, and the renewal of two others already in the network. Audioboom claims a premium network of 250 podcasts. The company also produces the Audioboom Originals Network. Continue Reading
Spotify has offered podcast recommendation lists for a long time. today comes the announcement that the mobile apps (Android and iOS) now feature numbered lists — podcast rankings. The two flagship charts are Top Podcasts and Trending Podcasts — nothing innovative there, as other charting apps do the same. Click through for our experience prowling through the charts. Continue Reading
In the wake of SiriusXM’s acquisition of podcast hosting and tech company Simplecast, RAIN is pleased to announce that CEO Brad Smith will speak at the Global Podcast Leadership Summit, a ZOOM event, on July 29. Smith will speak with Anne Frisbie, SVP of Global Supply & Partnerships at ad-tech company AdsWizz, in a session titled The Evolution of Podcast Content: From Creation to Monetization. Continue Reading
ARN, the Australian media group which manages the iHeartPodcast Network on that continent, released listening numbers that could fairly describe a COVID success story. Podcast tech company Megaphone measured ARN listening from January to mid-March, and compared it to mid-March through June. Several categories, and overall listening, rose during the COVID period.
Continue Reading
by Jeff Umbro
RAIN News welcomes Jeff Umbro in his first weekly appearance as guest columnist. In this edition, he offers in-depth analysis of siriusXM’s pending acquisition of Stitcher, and covers other podcasting news as well. Jeff is CEO of the Podglomerate podcast network. Click through for more details about Jeff, and of course to read the column. Continue Reading
by Steve Goldstein
A deep and interesting conversation with Scott Simonelli, CEO of Veritonic. Includes links to sonic identity examples. Continue Reading
Podtrac has released the June edition of the measurement company’s Top Podcast Publishers ranker. Many publications make noise about NPR reclaiming the #1 spot from iHeartRadio (and we hereby note it dutifully), but these two podcast powerhouses are separated by a small fraction of the key metric, US Unique Monthly Audience, and they flip back and forth. Click through for the chart, and RAIN’s remix based on per-show averages. Continue Reading
We received a note from PRX with the news that the audio network has scored distribution rights for Latino USA, a national news and cultural affairs program, for release to 220 public radio stations across the U.S. The Latino USA podcast (see it HERE) will join PRX’s portfolio of on-demand audio. The program is anchored by journalist and Futuro Media Group founder Maria Hinojosa. Continue Reading
In its first Latino Podcast Listener Report, Edison Research revealed a raft of statistics about a key American listening segment. Twenty-five percent of U.S. Latinos are monthly podcast listeners. Perhaps more important, 20% are weekly listeners, nearly matching the percentage of the total U.S. (13+) population. Continue Reading