Audioboom confirms Stuart Last as new CEO
Podcast company Audioboom has appointed Stuart Last as its new CEO, effective immediately. Last has been at Audioboom since 2014, and has held roles including COO. Continue Reading
Steve Goldstein: Podcast listening on smart speakers is less than 1%, but things are looking up
by Steve Goldstein
In his latest blog post, Steve examines podcast listening on smart speakers. Although things have been slow going for now, he’s optimistic about future growth. Continue Reading
Spotify to add tool for getting podcast suggestions to new listeners
Spotify is making inroads as a listening platform for podcasts, but the company is still looking to reach an ever-wider audience. The service now shows a button on its homepage that encourages listeners to select topics of interest to drive podcast recommendations. Continue Reading
Mighty Audio pint-sized streaming gadget adds Amazon Music support
Mighty Audio secured Kickstarter success back in 2016, and now the pint-sized portable for music streaming has announced a new expansion. The device echoes the old iPod Shuffle, and it offers listeners Spotify Premium playlist streaming on-the-go without a phone. Continue Reading
Tencent deal for UMG stake hits another hurdle around minority investor approach
Vivendi has reportedly been in discussions with Tencent for several months to develop a deal for the Chinese conglomerate to acquire a stake of Universal Music Group. But even as the discussions drag on, there’s still plenty of uncertainty around whether an agreement will come together. Continue Reading
Podtrac removes American Media podcasts from ranker, credits Podnews investigation
Two days after releasing the November edition of its Top Podcasts industry ranking, which showcases the top 20 U.S. podcasts according to Podtrac measurement, the company removed two programs which appeared on the list for the first time. The revision follows an investigation by James Cridland of Podnews. Continue Reading
Billboard parent company acquires Nielsen Music
Valence Media, the parent company for Billboard, has acquired Nielsen Music. This means the chart company and the source of its data will be united under one roof. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Continue Reading
Luminary launches Alexa skill, including support for subscription by voice
Luminary is launching an Alexa skill for its podcast platform. Paying listeners can use voice commands to control playback or to begin a paying subscription. Continue Reading
Pocket Casts releases new features with latest Android app update
Pocket Casts, the podcast listening platform, has released the latest update to its Android app. Version 7.6 of the app brings a new tab format, a revised Up Next list, and a new theme. Continue Reading
YouTube Music launches three personalized playlists aimed at both discovery and familiarity
YouTube Music has been expanding its programming to keep pace with the offerings of other on-demand streaming platforms. Its latest additions are three personalized playlists for music discovery. Continue Reading
Apple hires podcast PR head from Vox
Apple has hired Zach Kahn to helm PR for its podcasting business. He will start the role in January and will report to Senior Director of Communications Tom Neumayr, who confirmed the hire to Variety. Continue Reading
Pandora listening dips in September; year-over-year remains level (Triton Digital Webcast Metrics)
Stream listening slipped 3% in September, according to the Triton Digital Webcast Metrics Top 20 Ranker, pulled down by Pandora’s key listening metric which dropped 4%. Overall webcast listening in Triton’s top-20 cohort stayed level from the same month last year. Continue Reading