The Black Podcasting Awards, a first-year enterprise started just before COVID, is within the final two days of a Kickstarter fundraising effort. The crowdfunding goal is modest by Kickstarter standards: $7,500, with 30 hours remaining in the drive as of this post. Click through for the link. Continue Reading
Amazon Music has launched its expected Podcasts listening section. It is straightforward, cleanly presented, and unconcerned with innovation. (That last point not necessarily a bad thing for a mass-market platform.) We cruised through the mobile and web version of the new platform. Click through for details and loads of screenshots. Continue Reading
CNN is announcing this morning the launch and first-episode drop of Election 101, which the network calls a political-explainer podcast which “demystifies the American political system while offering a unique perspective on the inner workings of the electoral process.” The show is produced in affiliation with iHeartRadio. Continue Reading
Pod Drop features new and returning podcasts. Today: Futuristic galactic retribution from DUST, Jon Meacham returns with great American speeches, and Expedia brings back a podcast about … travel. Continue Reading
Triton digital is sending out an interesting announcement this morning: The company has linked up with Tru Optik Political Data Cloud to offer digital audio advertisers audience targeting by political inclination. These segments include Leaning Democrat, Leaning Independent, Leaning Republican, Swing Voters, and Undecided. It’s easy to imagine that the availability of these targeted segments could bring more political ads into digital audio during this election season. Continue Reading
On December 31 SiriusXM CEO Jim Meyer will leave the company. Replacing him will be Jennifer C. Witz, currently Director of Sales. Simultaneously, Sirius CFO David J. Frear will step away, his role to be filled by Sean Sullivan, currently CFO of AMC Networks. Meyer has been CEO for eight years, overseeing the acquisitions of Pandora, Stitcher, and Simplecast. Continue Reading
One key takeaway from the drop of Westwood One’s annual Podcast Download report, released last Friday, is that “heavy” podcast listeners (6+ hours per week) are increasing. There is much more to this sprawling 65-page study, which covers podcasting’s rebound from the Covid disruption, listening apps, age breakdowns, and behavior of “newcomers” and “pioneers.” Click through for charts, key points, and the download link. Continue Reading
Macmillan Podcasts is launching a new show, Driving the Green Book, which will be extended into Apple Maps, Apple Music, and Apple Books. The podcast, which officially drops tomorrow (but we see the first episode online today), will serve as the hub of a cross-platform suite of experiences. While we hear of many enterprises connecting podcasts to television and movies, this one is different, crossing online media categories. Click through for details and to hear the trailer. Continue Reading
Podcast measurement and attribution company Chartable has completed a $2.25M fundraising round led by Initialized Capital. Chartable joins over 120 companies in the Initialized Capital portfolio, which includes Reddit, Patreon, and Instacart. Continue Reading
A joint release from the two companies announces that cabana, the digital audio (mainly podcasts) division of AdLarge, is joining Triton Digital’s Podcast Metrics measurement service. Triton releases every-four-weeks (not calendar monthly) IAB-certified reports of top podcasts and podcast networks. Cabana will be measured for the next report, representing August 3 through August 30. Continue Reading
Ad tech company AdsWizz presented a raft of data at the IAB Podcast Upfront this week. One key point which caught our attention was the growth in advertising from January to June — up 44% in that period. Whatever disruptions Covid imposed on the industry, the overall growth trend over six months is startling. Click through for charts. Continue Reading
Our unique, industry-leading coverage of the IAB Podcast Upfront continues and finalizes today with notes and quotes from Day 3. Host Franchesca Ramsey was joined today by a co-host from the political sphere: Julian Castro. Click through for possibly too much detail, quotes, prizes for most fun, and pics. Continue Reading