Podcast ads: 'highest level of engagement yet'

• iHeartPodcast Network Australia and Podsights have published their podcast advertising Benchmark Report for 2021. Conversion rate is 62% higher on iHeartPodcast Network Australia than the global average from Podsights, the data claims; and global data shows podcast ads are showing their highest engagement figures yet.

• PodMatch now pays podcast hosts when they release episodes. Podcast hosts will now earn money when releasing new episodes interviewing a guest via the service. (It’s either $6 or $39 per month to join PodMatch as a host).

• PodInbox, a way of getting voicemails and donations from your fans, has launched a 'free’ plan, without a monthly subscription. You’ll be charged 5% of any donations.

• Podcast promotion company Podspike is giving podcasters the opportunity to appear in the PodLP podcast app, and appear on half a million smartphones across India and Africa.

• CrimeCon is launching their Inaugural CLUE Awards, including two awards specifically for podcasts.

• The Women’s Podcast Festival returns to London on Jun 18. The programme will include live shows, networking, pitching and parties that celebrate the best in women’s podcasting.

• German podcast hosting company Podigee has launched a dynamic ad server. It’s rolling out to all their customers over the next few months.

• Jeff Ostroff’s Looking Forward is now available in Nigeria, using MTN’s AudApp. You’ll now find Podnews there too; we’ve listed more details in our big list of podcast directories.

• There’s a new podcast production company in Bristol, in the South West of the UK. Music promotion organisation The Famous Company has launched Digital Bulls.

• Maple Media’s PlayerFM and Breaker suffered server issues. Meanwhile on Spotify, Joe Rogan’s podcast has mysteriously disappeared twice; we suspect it’s just a glitch.

Podcast News - with Quill

Produced by Quill: Contributors features provoking conversations about how to take your organization one step further by prioritizing more than just the bottom line. Hosts Marnie Niemi Hood and Russell Evans from the CAAT Pension Plan sit down with leaders who are contributing to the well-being of the country and global stage by innovating industries and leading change.

Bone Marry Bury launches today - an R-rated, female-driven campy murder fiction podcast with an A-list cast, including Sarah Hyland and Harvey Guillén. It follows 26-year-old Allie, played by Hyland, who’s closing out the worst year of her life after recently being fired, dumped, and evicted. It’s from Dear Media and RomComPods. - read more

In the new season of Gimlet’s Conviction, released today - nobody seems to know what happened to Nuseiba Hasan. She’s a Jordanian-Canadian woman, who, in 2006, suddenly vanished without a trace. That is until someone from her past resurfaced, searching for justice. For the last three years, investigative journalist Habiba Nosheen has been trying to find out what happened to Nuseiba. But some people want the truth to stay hidden.