Data from Acast and Nielsen focus on commercial benefits of podcast audience

Acast releases data from their Acast Audio Intelligence Report for the US and the UK. Podcast listeners are big earners and big spenders, says the research, earning 28% more in the UK, and 51% more in the US. They also trust the ads in podcasts more (UK, US).

Nielsen releases their Marketers Guide to Podcasting Q3 2018. They claim 16m US households are “avid fans” of podcasts, and that this figure has increased by 23% year-on-year. The 20-page report shows the top 50 products and amount purchased annually by podcast fans based on U.S. households. (Beer! Pet care! Tea! Candy! Liquor!)

DiscoverPods published a survey last year about the state of the industry. Headlines included: 71% of respondents consider podcast discovery as a major issue facing podcasts today; 66% of respondents rank marketing and building an audience among their top challenges. Podcasters and podcast fans can help this year’s survey by filling in the Podcast Trends Report survey.

Westwood One plans a big presence at Podcast Movement this week, with one key element being the Westwood One “Pitch Pod” on the 5th floor lobby of the Marriott. Podcasting talent can tell their story right at the conference, recording a sharable video pitch for consideration for a roster slot on Westwood One Podcast Network. Reporters and media contacts are also welcome to stop by the booth to record a video about their experience at Podcast Movement.

Auphonic adds ad insertion and manipulation into their audio processing service. It’s an API-only product; it will ensure that any ads dynamically inserted are the same loudness; will alter chapter points and transcriptions where it makes sense, too. (Podnews uses Auphonic when recording our podcast on the road, like this week in Philadelphia).

Spotify launches a new exclusive podcast in Spanish. Molo Cebrián, who also hosts Entiende Tu Mente is hosting the new show, Una a la Semana, containing stories behind the world of music. An accompanying playlist will also be published.

EmpireStreaming, a CDN and services company, releases Podium, a full-service podcast content management system. It boasts integration with AdsWizz. “Podium is the first management platform focused on creating revenue for podcasters of all sizes, not just the top 50.”

New podcasts include Bad Reception, an Audible Original (“set entirely on the phone”); Good Carma, a three-part comedy podcast from Direct Line, a UK auto insurer, and comedian Richard Herring.

Steven Goldstein distils the recent NPR/Edison smart speaker data. “Podcast listening on smart speakers is remarkably low.”

• RadioINK interviews Traci DeForge of Produce Your Podcast, in a post entitled “# She Went From Radio To Podcasting. Here’s Why…”

This link is no longer available, as at Aug 4 2023

A New Zealand website wonders whether the next corporate collaboration tool is… the podcast.

The BBC explain why 2018 is the year of the podcast boom, quoting many different UK podcasters.