NZME celebrates 50 million downloads across its diverse, expanding podcast network

With one of the fastest expanding and most diverse podcast network in the country, New Zealand Media and Entertainment today celebrated hitting 50 million annual podcast downloads.

Since September 2021, when the Triton Podcast Ranker was first introduced in New Zealand, NZME’s network has always taken out the Top Network spot, regularly seeing more than 4 million monthly podcast downloads across its network. In the latest results for September 2022, NZME celebrated 4.8 million monthly downloads – more than 3.7 million more than its next network rival, and 800,000 monthly listeners over the same period.

Michael Boggs, NZME Chief Executive says: “NZME is strategically focused on expanding our podcast network, recognising that podcasting is one of the fastest growing digital media platforms in the world. We’re proud to offer the country’s most diverse and expansive range of world-class global and local content across our podcast network. Be it through our independently produced podcasts, or those of our partners and external providers via our iHeartRadio platform, we cater to a hugely diverse audience which shows the strength of NZME’s network,” says Boggs.

NZME’s Head of Digital Audio, James Butcher, says: “Podcasting is growing exponentially around the world as one of the most popular ways people consume audio content. In Australia, for example, around 40 percent of Australians have listened to a podcast in the past month, and these numbers will only grow as more and more people understand the strength and variability of podcasts globally. We are seeing more and more brands value the powerful advertising possibilities that podcasting provides through the intimate connection between host and listener,” says Butcher.

In the monthly NZ Triton Podcast Ranker, NZME-produced podcasts Fletch, Vaughan & Hayley and Mike Hosking Breakfast have regularly made the top or second spot over the past year, with Matt Heath & Jeremy Wells also securing a regular spot in the top ten with their award-winning Matt & Jerry podcast. Hayley Sproull from ZM’s Fletch Vaughan & Hayley, says: “We’re stoked with the huge growth in our podcast downloads and listeners. Taking out the top spot a few times over the past year has been awesome. We love providing our listeners with fun, entertaining content and having it available across different platforms makes it even easier for them to tune in wherever they are,” she says. Matt Heath from Radio Hauraki Breakfast and the Matt & Jerry podcast says: “We’re really proud to consistently have around 50,000 regular listeners to our podcast. As well as our loyal Radio Hauraki listeners tuning into our podcast, it also provides another avenue for us to connect with a more diverse range of listeners locally and globally, across different backgrounds and ages. Podcasts are such a powerful and entertaining platform and the variety of content available really does blow your mind,” says Heath.

NZME’s diverse podcast network covers everything from current affairs to parenting, finance to dating advice, and sport to te reo Māori pronunciation. You can find them all on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your favourite podcasts.