Quake Media launches news-oriented subscription podcast service

Though some observers would wish that subscription-based exclusive podcast services would cease and vanish, neither is happening. The latest? Quake Media which announces its launch, funded by Wndrco and “a few other” undisclosed individuals. The roll-out content is verticalized as a news & politics destination, with six podcasts hosted by recognized news anchors. Five bucks a month to listen. Click through for details. Continue Reading

SiriusXM closes Stitcher: 150M addressable audience, new lines of reporting, Pandora gets more podcasts

SiriusXM has closed its acquisition of Stitcher, three months after the July announcement that the satellite giant would buy the pioneering podcast company. Stitcher joins Pandora as a wholly-owned Sirius company. SiriusXM also has an exclusive ad sales partnership with Soundcloud. Today’s announcement puts the combined audience at 150-million listeners, and calls that reach “the largest addressable audience in North America across all categories of digital audio – music, sports, talk, and podcasts.” Continue Reading

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Steve Goldstein: Music Finally Meets Podcasts

by Steve Goldstein
In this guest column, Steve Goldstein discusses spotify’s new feature which allows music into podcasts, via the Anchor service. He recognizes the important (while noting some clunkiness in the end product), and also notes that broadcast radio has spent years decreasing the role of “the passionate musicologist DJ’s of FM radios early days.” Continue Reading

Local podcast network (Loudspeaker) broadens reach with new name and multiple strategies

If you don’t live in northern Colorado you’ve possibly not heard of NoCo FM, a digital media outlet featuring regional musicians. After expansion to include some California voices, the company has rebranded as Loudspeaker. It’s a three-pronged strategy: Podcast network, streaming music/talk platform, and a live event on Halloween. Click through for more info. Continue Reading

Sam Harris: Has the Pandemic Offered a Pathway to Kids’ Podcasts?

RAIN is delighted to introduce the first piece from guest columnist Sam Harris of Hook Research in the UK. In this inaugural column, Harris explores the state of the kids spoken word content market in the UK and contemplates the benefits for brands operating within it. Plenty of research and quotes here, plus an overview of the child-oriented podcast and audiobook markets. Continue Reading

Bryan Barletta: Programmatic Advertising is the Hero Podcast Publishers Are Looking For

The latest Sounds Profitable column by Bryan Barletta explores, demystifies, and evangelizes programmatic audio advertising. Along the way he offers a much-needed review of the VASt standard, and explains why audio publishers love programmatic. Continue Reading

Nearly unchanging Podtrac top podcasts list illustrates why non-top podcasters want better discovery

Nothing succeeds like success, the saying goes, and podcasting is illustrating that maxim as much as any media category. Podtrac released its monthly Top Podcasts ranker (U.S. listening) for September. As with other recurring podcast rankers, this update shows stability in the 20-show cohort. Two shows which weren’t present in the previous month crept into the September list: How I Built This (#19) and TED Radio Hour (#20). In the top ten, only three shows shifted position, each by just one spot up or down. Click through for the whole list. Continue Reading

RAIN Summit saw epic radio panel and new Edison research about radio’s best listeners

Today RAIN presented Radio Revolution: A Global View — a two-hour virtual RAIN Summit in cooperation with the Radio Show, produced by the RAB and NAB. In a dazzling program featuring speakers from seven countries, attendees received an overview of forward-looking thought leadership in radio, and new insights from Edison Research about America’s most ardent and loyal listeners. Click through for details, quotes, and links. Continue Reading