Spotify changes Megaphone monetisation “price floor”

• Spotify’s Megaphone podcast host, which is no longer IAB certified, has sent an email to publishers with the news that they will no longer be able to set minimum prices, or “price floors”, for ads sold by the Spotify Audience Network (SPAN). “The current ad ecosystem on Megaphone operates as a waterfall, with each ad request hitting direct-sold, then SPAN, then VAST/programmatic,” explains podcast ad-tech newsletter The Download: its publisher Bryan Barletta says the move may let SPAN take more inventory, and prevents a publisher from maximising their revenue.

• In the UK, the Advertising Standards Authority has released new guidance on making ads clear in podcasts. Use the phrase “This is sponsored by…” or “This is a paid-for advertisement for…”, the self-regulator says. It’s similar to FTC guidelines in the US.

• Ad management company Flightpath has partnered with Barometer, a brand suitability service.

• The quarterly UK radio figures were released by RAJAR. 33% of UK adults (18.6mn people) listen to podcasts at least once a month.

• Hindenburg has rolled out a new version of Hindenburg PRO 2, which offers better multitrack transcription and improved performance.

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• Podcast hosting company Podbean has launched a YouTube Video to Podcast feature, allowing you to turn a YouTube playlist into a podcast. Blubrry launched a similar service in March.

• Pocket Casts has built a browser extension to make it easier to subscribe to podcasts while browsing the web.

• YouTube was responsible for 9.6% of TV time in the US in April, says Nielsen.

• Poddster has opened a new podcast studio in Dubai.

• Acast’s Lizzy Pollott went to Buckingham Palace to meet the King. Also there, judging by LinkedIn, was Listen’s Josh Adley, Persephonica’s Dino Sofos, Amazon’s Megan Bradshaw and others; it was an event to celebrate the UK’s creative industries.

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Tips and tricks - with Ausha Pro 🚀

• Ausha suggests: Explore 10 top branded podcasts and what makes them succeed

• Ausha suggests: Learn to create an effective branded podcast using your existing content.

• Platform Podcasting posts How To Turn Social Media Followers Into Listeners – an Alternative Strategy

Podcast News - with Airwave

With Airwave: Family Road Trip Trivia's ’s Brittany Gibbons says: “Joining Airwave has been such a positive experience for our podcast, not just financially, but from start to finish. We were escorted through set-up and ad sales, and feel so heard and cared for by the entire Airwave staff. Ad sales have increased, our revenue has increased, and the support from Airwave has enabled us to reinvest in our podcast, and massively grow our audience.”

In Roger Bolton’s Beeb Watch, Matt Deegan is interviewed about the BBC’s plans to take podcast advertising in the UK, and is a bit punchy: “The BBC already gets £5.7 billion of income from a variety of sources. It does not need £1 million a year out of the podcast business. I could go in and find seven managers to fire, and I could save a million pounds.” Meanwhile, media commentator Raymond Snoddy says it’s a distraction.

Risky Business with Nate Silver and Maria Konnikova is new today - a show about making good decisions in poker, in politics, and in your everyday life. Whether its what car to buy, or what time to leave for the airport, the podcast can help. It’s new from Pushkin Industries and iHeartPodcasts.

Drunk Women Solving Crime has joined the Audio Always Originals network. The new deal focuses on maximising marketing and commercial opportunities for the podcast. Recordings also move to Audio Always’ Visual Podcast Studio in Farringdon, London and will receive social media and video support from the company’s award-winning digital team.