Publicly traded podcast empire Acast reported Q3 earnings this week, and the results show uplift for a growing company striving for net profitability. Click through for financial details and new business deals. Continue Reading
In the third quarter, iHeartMedia’s podcast revenue gained 184% compared to the same quarter last year. That according to Chairman/CEO Bob Pittman during the Q3 earnings call. Much talk of Podtrac status, success metrics, and post-cookie revenue generation. Continue Reading
What is a live ad read? In a general sense, it is delivery of ad copy by the program host. What if the program host is an AI voice? That is the framework for Trinity Audio’s new AI-powered audio advertising experience. We explore implications. Continue Reading
In what the company calls a “major development” on its AI platform, podcast media planning platform Magellan AI is announcing Verified Downloads, a new feature which reveals show downloads, individual episode downloads, and unique listenership. IN a democratizing effort, the company is pitching to podcasters of all sizes. Continue Reading
Kagan, a research group within S&P Global Market Intelligence, has updated its summary and forecast of smart speaker shipments globally. The rise from 2016 through 2020 is meteoric, and the projection for 2021 continues the trend. Click for the chart. Continue Reading
Jottings of Note
— Deep Integration (Audio Up)
— Franchising (NPR)
— Honoree (Fresh Air Productions)
James Cridland returns with an analysis of a newly released RAJAR, the UK radio ratings report of record. One item of note, and graphed in this piece: UK radio formats now behave the same throughout dayparts. ALSO: Foxtel, Fred Jacobs, Bob Hoffman, and more. Continue Reading
Australian media company and podcast publisher ARN has partnered with podcast advertising intelligence company Magellan AI to create and release a report of the top 15 advertisers across the layer of top 400 Australian podcasts. Click through for the results, and how they relate to Magellan’s recent U.S. lists. Continue Reading
Global streaming audio service Deezer is splashing an announcement of a new relationship with Cologne-based RTL Deutschland, the German media conglomerate. RTL encompasses television and radio; Deezer will provide the streaming music, online radio, podcast, and audiobook solution. Continue Reading
Libsyn makes another deal. PODGO, founded last year, brings together podcasts of any reach with advertisers who want highly targeted, host-read sponsorship messages. Click for more info and a rundown of Libsyn’s acquisition streak. Continue Reading
Social podcast discovery platform Podchaser will ingest the entire catalog 31,000 podcasts from global podcast platform and marketplace Acast. Podchaser is sometimes called the IMDB of podcasts, and provides rating and reviews, creator and guest credits, user-curated playlists, and other social sharing and discovery features. Continue Reading