RAIN Notes: Thursday, March 30
Jottings of Note
— Taking the Lead (Audacy)
— Poor Dad (Audio Up)
— History of Korean Podcasting (Podnews)
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RAIN Notes: Wednesday, March 29
Jottings of Note
— Two For One (Audacy)
— New Chair (Libsyn)
— Using Words (Riverside)
Interchangeable Ad Slots: Acast’s method of increasing inventory
Global podcast company Acast sent an interesting notice about a tech innovation called Interchangeable Ad Slots. The system takes advantage of Acast’s basic system setting which reserves each ad slot for one of two ad types: host reads, or pre-recorded brand commercials. The new technology can discern which type is reserved for a slot, and override that setting by selling and delivering the other type. Continue Reading
2022 global recorded music earned $31B, grew 6.7%: MIDiA Research
MIDiA notes that 2022 totals represent “a year of realignment for much of the global economy.” The research firm observes that 2021 was a boom year, possibly driven by the global Covid phenomenon. 2022 growth was not as boomy, but still a robust stoary of growing revenue. Continue Reading
Why is RSS great? A pitch by the Open Standards Project
From the beginning, podcasting used the open RSS system for distribution. RSS enables any audio app to present podcasts in any kind of directory system. It’s an open, unowned protocol. But when the most popular podcast in the U.S. (The Joe Rogan Experience, according to Edison Research) is purchased by one of the most popular listening apps in the world (Spotify), the door slams shut on RSS. Justin Jackson, a founder of Transistor.FM, posted a detailed advocacy for RSS. Continue Reading
Streaming audio share drops in-car compared to radio, especially when ad-supported: Edison Research
It is well established that in-car listening is a stronghold for American radio’s reach. A recent edition of Edison Research’s Weekly Insights series puts numbers to the comparative strength of AM/FM in the car, and compares them with out-of-car listening. Click for details and charts. Continue Reading
Planet Money podcast started a record label, and now has a hit
Last October the Planet Money podcast announced that it was starting a record label — with one song: “Inflation” by Earnest Jackson. The song was independently released 47 years previously, but failed to reach any kind of “hit” status. Planet Money thought current economic conditions warranted a re-release, and also wanted to learn about the economics of the music business, so the podcast crew put the song on Spotify. Now it’s a hit. Continue Reading
“Synthetic Stories” — an AI-generated podcast launches and makes us think of AI audiobooks.
Synthetic Stories is a new podcast, and the first podcast (as far as we know) produced entirely by Artificial Intelligence (AI). That includes the script, the sound design, the music composition, the artwork, the voice performance, and the promotional materials accompanying the release. The presentation reminds us of synthetically produced audiobooks; we check on Apple’s progress with that. All these example are persuasive … a threat to performers, and a potential cost-cutting option to producers. Continue Reading
NPR completes promised layoffs, discontinues four podcasts in “existential” cost reduction
A month after announcing upcoming layoffs, NPR has started and possibly completed the 10% workforce reduction. CEO John Lansing calls the action “existential.” The action is NPR’s largest layoff since 2008. Four podcasts will be discontinued. Individual and departmental targets are not specified, but it’s a broad sweep across many functions and types of work. NPM is not affected. Click for more details. Continue Reading
Triton Digital Canada Podcast Ranker shows four newcomers to top 100
In Triton Digital’s newly released Canada Podcast Ranker for February, we see a mostly stable list from the previous month, with just four newcomers. The list ranks by downloads. Four new entrants made the list. Click through for more details, including biggest gainer (you might suspect what it is) and biggest ranking drop. (wait, wait for it). Continue Reading
Podcast offers reach, youth, and differentiation: Sounds Profitable / Signal Hill
A new podcast audience study from Sounds Profitable and a cluster of sponsors was presented by co-CEO Tom Webster yesterday. Called The Medium Moves the Message, the central learnings are that podcasting’s young audience is growing, is differentiated in their listening habits, and that advertising on podcasts delivers “net new consumers.” Click through for details, slides, and key takeaways. Continue Reading
Subscription streaming drives growth of worldwide recorded music revenue (IFPI)
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry has released its full-year 2022 report. The research is headlined with one key metric: The global recorded music market grew by 9.0% in 2022, driven by growth in paid subscription streaming. This meshes with the recently released RIAA of U.S. music revenue. Click through for many more stats.
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