In Europe, they’re still investing in podcasts

• Podimo has just announced that it has raised €44mn (US $48mn) in funding. Morten Strunge, the CEO, says it will allow the company, which offers subscriptions to a premium podcast platform, to continue growth while orienting it towards profitability.

• The effect of iOS 17’s changes in Apple Podcasts could be 30% fewer downloads for your show, according to Libsyn’s Rob Walch, speaking in The Feed. “If shows have over 300 episodes, they could and should expect to see their weekly downloads at the end of November be greater than a 25% drop below where their weekly numbers were in early September.” He adds: “Your audience size did not change. Those numbers? That was extra downloads (from) your back catalog (that) weren’t being listened to. It’s just right sizing your monthly and weekly downloads to what’s more realistic and what’s really happening.”

  • Rob also notes that Spotify’s numbers are down, too: a point we also made on Dec 4.

• If you wonder how other people are doing with their podcast downloads, our sister publication the Podcast Business Journal has links to over 300 shows who are sharing their download data using OP3.

• The Podcast Reader, a printed magazine of podcast transcripts which published its final edition in November, is now to be published digitally by podcast transcript company Fanfare. The new publication will be free, and will launch early next year.

• The Spanish-language podcast platform iVoox has published its look back at 2023. iVoox Rewind is available to audiences as a personalised view, and the company has also released a number of statistics from it.

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• Buzzsprout is sending “Backtrack 2023” to its users, data showing how podcasts on the platform did. The links are shareable, so here is the data for our own Podnews Weekly Review. Unsurprisingly, our trailer is the #1 downloaded episode; and the show is in the top 10% on Buzzsprout, who sponsor the show.

• We’ve updated our recommendations for podcast apps to replace Google Podcasts and Stitcher.

• Libsyn has published its predictions and wishes for podcasting in 2024.

Podcast News

Was I In A Cult? has signed with PodcastOne, making it the twenty-second podcast added to the PodcastOne network in 2023. It was with Kast Media.

Sleep from Space is new from Caloroga Shark Media - a tranquil journey through space, where the hosts explore the marvels of our universe, in a format with the soothing power of storytelling to help you drift into peaceful sleep. Education and sleep? Reminds us of school…

Ruthless is a new politics show from Club Road Associates, promising to be “a fresh perspective to political commentary.” The company has announced an expansion of its strategic partnership with Libsyn’s AdvertiseCast.

Podcast promotion in the wild

Two readers, two stations, two days, the same podcast. To the left: taken on Nov 15 in Finsbury Park station by Podnews reader Adam; to the right, taken on Nov 16 at platform 9 of King’s Cross station by Podnews reader Rachael. The poster is promoting Table Manners. The QR code, incidentally, goes to a great mobile-ready website with links all over the place, a decent player, and even a store for merch.

Spot some marketing for podcasts in the real world? Hit reply and send us a (landscape) photograph.