Spotify makes a billion

• Spotify has released its Q1/24 financials. The company made over €1bn gross profit (US$1.07bn) for the first time; and returned €197mn of net income.

  • Spotify’s profit margin for Q1 increased Y/Y from 25.2% to 27.6%. It laid off over 2,300 people last year, and raised prices in many territories.
  • Ad revenue grew 18% Y/Y. “Podcast advertising revenue grew faster than music, driven by significant growth in impressions sold … partially offset by softer pricing. The Spotify Audience Network saw high single digit Q/Q growth in participating publishers and shows.” The company doesn’t split out podcast revenue.
  • Spotify now has 615mn monthly users (up 19%): below expectations. It grew paid subscribers by just 14%, to 239mn.

• 86% of branded podcasts increase a brand’s affinity with their listeners, says new data from Signal Hill Insights. Branded podcasts also help with brand recall. The 2024 Branded Podcasts Benchmark Report is released today.

• iHeartMedia has launched the Women’s Sports Audio Network, which it calls the first ever audio platform dedicated to women’s sports.

• Podcast analytics and insights platform CoHost has announced the publication of its second annual State of Podcast Agencies report. The biggest issue for podcast agencies? Trackable ROI, which impacts 33% of agencies.

• In the UK, AudioLab has been launched by Adwanted UK. It’s claimed to be the first cross-platform digital audio measurement solution in the country.

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• We covered Spotify’s quiet withdrawl from the IAB on Monday. In commentary about Spotify’s IAB , RAIN’s Brad Hill calls it “a signal of extraordinary self-sufficiency”. He also notes that the IAB’s website still lists Spotify as a member of the IAB Podcasting Technical Working Group; we spotted that too, but we’re told this is an error (not least, the named contact, Kevin Sachs, left the company at the end of March).

• There’s a new podcast studio in Brookfield, Illinois.

• Crime Junkie is to be a 24-hour radio station. Crime Junkie Radio is a 24/7 true crime radio station on SiriusXM. It launches on Friday morning.

• The Audio Drama Directory is “an online resource with the goal of offering the most comprehensive listings of websites for audio drama enthusiasts.” New to us, it’s been running since last year.

• Roland is to release a podcasting kit. “Go:Podcast” gives you a USB microphone and an app that supports video and live streaming.

• The Peabody Awards has announced some nominees, including for its podcast categories.

• Wondery has launched Wondery+, its curated premium podcast service, for UK podcast listeners. We’re promised lots of British content, and a localised and curated ad-free experience for UK audiences.

Tips and tricks - with Memberful

• Three ways to test your audio quality, from Platform Podcasting, includes trying to listen in a busy café - and in your car - and what to do if you can’t.

• How do YouTube stats work for podcasters? They’re not in your podcast host’s dashboard (probably); we explain why.

Podcast News - with New Podcast Trailers - the podcast

LEAH’S GALS, described as a a low-rent, Southern fried twist on a literary classic is available in full today. It’s the first production from Mind’s Eye Podcasts.

Transit Unplugged reaches episode 300 today. The show tackles issues like zero emissions, the bus manufacturing crisis in the US, and changing ridership patterns: today’s episode is a special transit CEO Roundtable recorded live at the ThinkTransit conference. It features an unscripted look into the lives and careers of four leading transit CEOs. (We hope they take transit to work).