Comments: coming to podcasts on Spotify?

• Are comments coming to podcasts on Spotify? Chris Messina notes some new code in the company’s iOS app suggesting the new feature is in development. The company also seems to be adding a method to discover what your friends are listening to.

• Submissions for The Ambies are now open. You’ve until Nov 18 to get your entries in. New categories include “Best DIY Podcast”, for “any podcast with a budget of $3,000 or less per episode”. 😳

• Libsyn’s AdvertiseCast said that the average CPM rate for podcast advertising within AdvertiseCast’s marketplace in August was $23.51. It’s down year-on-year from $23.70, and month-on-month from $23.63.

  • The company has also suggested that the Fiction, Art, and Hobbies & Games categories are “more affordable”.

• The final schedule has been released for the London Podcast Festival. The event takes place between Sep 8 and Sep 19 in London.

• The Apple HomePod mini is, apparently, the world’s best-selling smart speaker, beating similar products from Amazon and Google. Look at the whole smart speaker range, though, and Amazon remains ahead with 28.2% of the market; Google at 17.2%.

• PRX Dovetail, the company’s podcast hosting and monetisation service, has announced updates to the product. New tools include enhancements to the product’s ad inventory management.

• In Germany, Axel Springer Audio and Radio FFN have launched a radio station, stories·fm, which plays “a mix of podcasts and current music”.

• Gumball post about their panel at Podcast Movement 2022.

“The identity of the audio world is shifting from a fledgling niche of the broader media business to a more established distribution channel for deep-pocketed advertisers.” - Ashley Carman, on her impressions of Podcast Movement 2022

Moves and hires - with Podjobs.net

• Tina Forsyth is a new partner at The Podcast Connector, a podcast guest booking agency.

• Dan Bobkoff has launched his own full-service podcast company, Rhyme Media.He was formerly Executive Producer, Podcasts at Axios.

• We admire Len Markidan's LinkedIn career history.

Tips and tricks

• Thinking about putting your podcast on YouTube? Elizabeth Hames from Pacific Content suggests making a playlist and adding SEO-friendly descriptions.

• How can the podcasting industry can be more inclusive of people with speech differences? Maya Chupkov writes about her recent Podcast Movement session.

Podcast News - with Lemonada Media

With Lemonada Media: TikTok superstar V Spehar sometimes needs more than a minute to bring you the news! The Under the Desk News creator offers funny, insightful commentary every Tuesday and Friday on V Interesting.

The Teacher’s Pet returns to Australian audiences tomorrow. The podcast had been removed for legal reasons during the trial of Chris Dawson, who was found guilty earlier this week of murdering his wife.

A Study of Strange was launched earlier this week by host Michael May and Convergent Content LLC. The podcast attempts to debunk common misconceptions and introduce strange tales that are typically overlooked in the genre.

Sisters of the Underground launched yesterday from iHeartMedia’s My Cultura Network, Eva Longoria and Dania Ramirez. The show tells the true story of the Mirabal sisters, whose lifelong activism in the Dominican Republic and state-orchestrated assassination led to the downfall of one of the most brutal and enduring dictators of the 20th Century, Rafael Trujillo (aka El Jefe).