I Hear Things

Today in the business of podcasting: Ofcom has new UK listenership numbers, Spotify is raising its price in overseas markets, reactions to Bloomberg's Wondery closure article, and Xiaomi unveils new open source AI voice model for cars and appliances. Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment. 

Today in the business of podcasting: Wondery podcast studio is shutting down, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is shutting down, SiriusXM reports healthy podcast growth in Q2, and why most Americans were never particularly interested in Meghan Markle's podcasting efforts.Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment. 

This week in the business of podcasting: Sounds Profitable has a new study focusing on how podcast audiences drive action, Magellan AI has a chart of their top movers and shakers in the podcast ad world, Spotify wants fans to "Read like they Listen", audio fiction is becoming a strategic IP play for Hollywood talent, and Astronomer hired Maximum Effort to address the Coldplay situation.Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment. 

Today in the business of podcasting: Magellan AI has their June top spenders report, how influencer marketing has evolved over H1, TikTok to track audiences after they click out of the app, and podcasts are becoming more of a strategic IP play for actors.Find links to every article mentioned by heading to The Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to go straight to today's installment.

Today in the business of podcasting: Sounds Profitable has published a new report called Driving to Action, Andreessen Horowitz is looking to pay $400k to build out a podcast network, how broadcasters are adapting to young sports fans' desire for instant clips and highlights, and a Fox affiliate in Grand Rapids is the latest Scripps TV station to assign designated neighborhood reporters. Find links to every article mentioned by heading to The Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to go straight to today's installment.

Today in the business of podcasting: Spotify promotes audiobook listening with music language, a Reddit thread on /r/podcasts strikes up conversations about egregious pre-rolls, why settle for likes when brands can foster love, and Google rebuffs Pew report claiming AI summary search results are causing a decrease in clicks to webpages. Find links to every article mentioned by heading to The Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to go straight to today's installment.

Today in the business of podcasting: Acast crosses milestone with the U.S. becoming their highest-contributing single podcast market, Maximum Effort produces a satirical comedy ad for Astronomer, and Adweek looks at the growth and hiring spree happening with smaller, indie ad agencies.Register now for our upcoming webinar!Find links to every article mentioned by going to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or click here to go direct to today's issue.

This week in the business of podcasting: Why Sharon Taylor argues podcasting is losing sight of its audio roots, what Tom Webster learned from the longest-running one-person show in Vegas, an interview with OpusClip's Louis Roberts, and what the death of TheLate Show means for podcasting. Find links to every article mentioned by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to go straight to today's entry.

Today in the business of podcasting: a look at Spotify's "super-listeners", what Tom Webster learned from a magician that applies to podcasting, and the Just for Laughs festival is awarding a Podcast of the Year during this year's festival. Find links to every article mentioned by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to go straight to today's entry.

Today in the business of podcasting: Apple details how they protect listener privacy in listening reports, Steve Goldsten writes on how podcasting has largely usurped the classic late-night talk show, Sharon Taylor argues why video podcasting narratives leave audio behind, and an interview with OpusClip's Louis Roberts. Find links to every article mentioned by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to head straight to today's entry.

Audience engagement is the true magic that makes shows stick, who better to learn from than actual magicians? Written and narrated by Tom WebsterEdited by Bryan Barletta and Gavin GaddisAudio editing by Gavin GaddisRegister for Sounds Profitable's next research webinar.Find the full article here on Sounds Profitable.

Today in the business of podcasting: what the death of The Late Show might say about linear TV in general, a look at Joe Budden's income streams, advertising awards race to tighten up generative AI guidelines after Cannes Lions, Spotify launches Audiobooks+ in European markets and Canada, and 6AM City seeks to automate local newsletter production with Good Daily's AI. Find links to every article mentioned by heading to The Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here for today's episode post.

Today in the business of podcasting: Apple Podcasts have new listener reports (and Dan Misener has a suggestion for a future one), The New York Times looks at the audience of multi-hour chat podcasts, an overlook at how public broadcasting is impacted by the Senate rescinding $1b in funding, Nicolle Wallce's MSNBC podcast now is aired on MSNBC proper, and Sounds Profitable won the 2025 Content Marketing Institute award for Best Data Storytelling.Find links to every article mentioned by heading to The Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here for today's specific post.

This week in the business of podcasting.Audioboom has acquired AdeliciousSelling the health & fitness podcast mindsetContent creators shut out of the Emmys for a second year runningThe power of podcast search optimizationGoogle is indexing InstagramVideo podcasting and YouTube production is creating jobs in an otherwise hurting Hollywood.Find links to every article discussed by heading to the Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to head straight to the post for today's episode.

Today in the business of podcasting: SiriusXM launches an ad-supported tier, Audioboom acquires Adelicious, how Kids & Family podcasts are perfect for the "nag factor", content creators once again left out of the Emmys, and Acast reports on a podcast campaign run for KFC in Australia. Find links to every article discussed by heading to the Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to head straight to the post for today's episode.

Today in the business of podcasting: Google is now indexing Instagram, Ausha's Jennfer Han talks about a recent BBC Studios case study, Digiday looks at the creator industrial complex, and IAB Tech Lab is working on an intiative to monetize LLMs scraping content and give control back to publishers. Find links to every article discussed by heading to the Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to head straight to the post for today's episode.

Today in the business of podcasting: Audioboom posts profit in Q2, CMOs seek stability and cutting out the middleman with content creator marketing, and the LA Times covers the burgeoning video production job market caused by the rise of YouTubers and video podcasting. Find links to every article discussed by heading to the Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to head straight to the post for today's episode.

This week in the business of podcasting: There's preservationists who want to save the soul of podcasting, there's growth advocates that welcome the YouTubeifiaction of podcasts. Tom Webster argues both are right, and that binary might be hurting podcasting's ability to preserve its "soul." The Podcast Host and Alitu CEO Colin Gray talks about the sort-of surprise that was seeing Alitu on stream during Apple's WWDC presentation, as well as his experiences over 15 years of working in podcasting. YouTube is preparing a crackdown on mass-produced and repetitive video content with some wording updates to the guidelines that run their monetization program. Spotify has ensured pod.link's future by giving the company back to Nathan Gathright, the original developer. Find links to every article discussed by heading to the Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com, or clicking here to head straight to the post for today's episode.

Today in the business of podcasting: how podcasting can preserve its spark whiel growing into video, how Alityu ended up on screen at WWDC, YouTube's preparing to crack down on reuploaded/generated content, Jasmine Crockett addresses the need for media-savvy politicians for podcast appearances, and two major AI players working on their own browsers to challenge Google's search engine dominance. Find links to every article mentioned in the newsletter version of today's episode, which you can find right here in The Download's section of SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: The Streaming Wars looks at how "watch hours" can be turned into a valuable metric, The Podcast Exchange announces it is filing a Notion of Intention in Canadian bankruptcy court, Signal Hill Insights looks at three common reasons host-read ads fall short, and WPP issues profit warning as Q2 perfomance falls below expectations. Links to every article covered can be found in today's issue of the newsletter, available here on SoundsProfitable.com

Preservationists fear video stealing podcasting's soul, growth advocates celebrate YouTube driving more to the medium. Thing is, they're both right.Written and narrated by Tom WebsterEdited by Bryan Barletta and Gavin GaddisAudio editing by Gavin GaddisFind the full article here on Sounds Profitable.

Today in the business of podcasting: podcasting is booming in India, Moonbug has a study into how parents consume ad-supported media, Spotify is giving pod.link back to its original developer, an explanation of the Spotify-approved generative AI "band" Velvet Sundown, and Triton Digital has a new annual study on Canadian podcast listner behavior. Find links to every article mentioned in today's episode post on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: Amazon's DSP is selling Roku inventory, a case study of a podcast that lowered downloads but upped audience engagement, Spotify Jam has been updated in Android Auto, and YouTube calls for UK government to embrace content creators. Find links to every article mentioned in today's episode in this post on SoundsProfitable.com

This week in the business of podcasting: the power of Health & Wellness and Self-Improvement podcast consumers, how podcasting can cover demographic blind spots, lessons from Cannes Lions, and YouTube content coming to Spotify video. Links to every article mentioned can be found here on SoundsProfitable.com.

Today in the business of podcasting: unlocking the power of purpose-driven podcasting, how podcasting can cover demographic blind spots, non-podcast video on Spotify, and how indie agencies are competing with holding companies for creatoe measurement and ad tech. Find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: YouTube is a great place for podcasters to get visibility but not necessarily the perfect fit for every podcast, companies weigh in on the Spotify Partner Program after six months of operation, how under-represented sports are using advancements in tech to build their own streaming stack, what demographics are thriving in Germany's podcasting scene, and YouTube gives a peek behind the recommendation algorithm curtain. Find links to every article mentioned, including signup for tomorrow's webinar, right here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: what podcasting gets right about attention, smart TVs rise the second-most-used device to consume podcasts, Crunchyroll has a new companion podcast produced with Sony, why there's a CPM slump growing in the CTV market, and AudioUK calls for UK government to enshrine podcasts. Find links to every article mentioned - and our webinar signup, here on SoundsProfitable.com

This week in the business of podcasting: Influencers grab some spotlight at Cannes Lions, how news podcasts covered the breaking news of the U.S. bombing Iran over the weekend, two senators allege Spotify is using a loophole to pay lower music royalty rates, a coalition of Canadian podcasting companies band together to ask the government to consider podcasts CanCon, and Tubi is adding hundreds of episodes from YouTube creators under their Tubi for Creators project. Find links to every article mentioned, including the webinar signup, right here on SoundsProftiable.com

This week in the business of podcasting: Tom Webster looks at the power of live events hold for podcasting, we look at news coming out of Cannes Lions, and things are looking up for digital audio going forward in 2025.Register for the next Sounds Profitable webinar here. For links to every article I mentioned, visit the episodes' page on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: the under-utilized benefits of podcast live events, creators are in the conversation at Cannes, reducing risk as download popularity drops, Amazon has doubled their Prime Video ad over 18 months, and researched-back strategies for high-impact marketing as a nonprofit.Registration for the upcoming webinar can be found here. All of the links mentioned in today's episode can be found here on this episodes' page at SoundsProfitable.com.

Today in the business of podcasting: Audion and xpln.ai's report shows blending digital audio with in-video audio increrease brand recall and message recall, Reuters and the University of Oxford have  new study about news content, SiriusXM is partnering with Innovid for better MMM, CNN is rebranding CNN Audio to CNN Podcasts, and WhatsApp is adding ads for the first time.Catch every link mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

This week in the business of podcasting: Tom Webster talks tracking pixels, Paul Riismandel talks YouTube's place in podcasting, Amazon adds private auctions to Prime Video, and Apple adds some new features to Apple Podcasts during WWDC. Find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

Tracking pixels are awesome at what they do, but like any tool there's also a way to misuse them and podcasting should remain conscious of that. Written and narrated by Tom WebsterEdited by Bryan Barletta and Gavin GaddisAudio editing by Gavin GaddisFind the full article here on Sounds Profitable.

Today in a special episode of The Download we're covering nine stories rapid-fire in an "Oops, all Quick Hits" spectactular. As a result, you can find links to every piece mentioned here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: a more nuanced look at YouTube's place in podcasting, Australia's ad market, the global ad forecast, and how Google AI is impacting search traffic. Find links to every article mentioned here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: Apple's announcements from WWDC, YouTube has backed off of removing videos via moderation, Acast boosted interestin EuroMillions with a podcast, and what the Creator's Caucus intends to do. Find links to everything mentioned here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: Sounds Profitable will be at Cannes Lions, Wondercraft co-founder Oskar Serrander explains Convo Mode using Convo Mode, Amazon adds private auctions to Prime Video, a look at how podcasting is doing on Patreon, coverage of Sounds Profitable's latest study, and Spotify lays off 15 podcasting positions at The Ringer and Spotify Studios.Find links to everything mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

This week in the business of podcasting: Sound Profitable's latest study shows podcasting trust is at an all-time high, HLS could be the future of RSS, and NPR's CEO writes an open letter to Congress about funding for public media. Find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: Why podcasting's advertising advantage is bigger than we thought, The Trade Desk looks at audio's effectiveness in Australia, and Gartner has a new annual CMO survey.Find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

The latest edition of The Advertising Landscape shows podcasting's biggest fans are also paying a lot of attention. Written and narrated by Tom WebsterEdited by Bryan Barletta and Gavin GaddisAudio editing by Gavin GaddisFind the full article here on Sounds Profitable.

Today in the business of podcasting: Digiday covers Sounds Profitable's latest study, Spotify is prepping to add podcast inventory to their ad exchange, and NPR's CEO writes an open letter to Congress about public media funding. Find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

LAST CALL: Tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. EST the second chapter of The Advertising Landscape, the largest study of podcast advertising effectiveness in the U.S., will debut in a live webinar hosted by Tom Webster. Register now to grab your virtual seat and get the report sent directly to your inbox after the presentation. Today in the business of podcasting: The Podcast Standards Project pitches HLS streaming as the future of RSS, MarketingBrew looks at advertisers' hesitance to book True Crime, and Kast Media emergeces from bankruptcy proceedings at an operating profit. Find links to every article mentioned here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: American Public Media puts successful Brains On! Universe podcasts up for sale, RadioInk covers Sounds Profitable reserch, IAB Australia finds podcast advertising continued growing in Q1, and JAR Audio explains how they sell podcast productions to decision-makers.Find links to every article mentioned here on SoundsProfitable.com

This week in the business of podcasting: insights from Podcast Show London, Tom Webster looks at podcast advertising's (lack of) gender gap when it comes to recall, a roundup of upcoming webinars, and Ofcom has a new podcast survey for UK listenership. Find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: Tom Webster talks about the lack of a gender gap in podcast advertising recall, Spotify adds new discovery features for podcasts, Nielsen has their new annual marketing report, Horizon Media is opening up a public RFP, and Netflix has teamed up with BBC Studios for a new comedy podcast hosted by Jimmy Carr.Find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: I've got a rundown of a ton of upcoming webinars, making the case for making the case for spoken word audio, and CMOs' outlook for the year after Q2. Find links to every article (and webinar) mentioned by heading here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: reflections from Podcast Show London, Spotify experienced a short outage, Adam Bowie looks at the new Ofcom podcast listener report, and Shopify tops the Q1 2025 top podcast ad spender chart for Australia. Find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com

From an undisclosed hotel room in Islington, Bryan Barletta debuts the Ad-Sales Partner Ecosystem and shares how you can get your company involved.Find the full article, infographic, and submission link here on SoundsProfitable.comWritten by Bryan BarlettaEdited and Narrated by Gavin Gaddis

This week in the business of podcasting: a slew of international podcast listenership data, Spotify iOS users can now buy audiobooks direct, Amazon joins the Prebid party, and Sounds Profitable has a webinar coming up in a couple weeks. Find links to everything mentioned at the newsletter page, available here on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: Australian digital audio ad revenue is climbing, multiple new reports show UK podcast listenership continues to grow, and Amazon has officially enabled access to Prebid.Find links to every article mentioned right here with today's newsletter post on SoundsProfitable.com

Today in the business of podcasting: the IAB has open comments for their new Digital Advertising Agreements, Digiday covers the growing popularity of video podcasting with advertisers, Channel 4 is bringing their content to Spotify video podcasting, and Edison Research drops their quarterly UK top 25 podcast chart.You can find links to every article mentioned right here on SoundsProfitable.com