Acknowledgment: I stopped automatically downloading Apple Podcasts because I’m reckless with my data and I’ve absolutely let podcast downloads eat up my phone more than once. I love having back episodes of Things you missed in subway history classes as much as the next person, but I also need to be able to save and send to my husband, I think you should leave GIFs at will (♫ these are the little things you do together ♫). Anyway, Apple’s new update, which allows users to limit downloads to five episodes at a time, seems to have been made especially for me.
Also today, Spotify is experimenting with NFT, highlights from Podcast Upfronts and how the podcast has outgrown its namesake.
Apple makes it easier to distribute subscription podcasts, manage podcast storage
Creators who are part of the Apple Podcasters program will no longer have to take the extra step of uploading podcasts through the Apple Podcast Connect dashboard – as long as they use a specific distribution platform. The initial group of partner hosts includes Acast, Libsyn, Buzzsprout, Omny Studio, RSS.com, Blubrry and ART19. Podcasters who create subscription podcasts on any of these platforms will be able to publish Apple broadcasts directly from their host’s dashboard using a new feature known as “Delegated Delivery.” The feature should start “this fall”.
Among the hosting platforms that are not in this original group is Spotify’s Anchor, although Apple Podcast spokesman Zack Kahn said he could become a host partner if the company chooses to do so. Spotify did not respond to a request for comment on whether to do so. Spotify already has its own designated partner hosts that have simplified the publication of subscription broadcasts through its open access program, including Supercast, Glow.fm (owned by Libsyn) and an Apple Acast partner. (Note: Vox Media is also a partner in Spotify’s open source program).
Apple Podcast users will also have a new tool available with a new software update for iPhone, iPad and Mac that has already been released. Listeners can now determine how many podcast episodes they want to continue downloading in the offline listening app, with options like “last five episodes” or those published in the “last 14 days”. Older episodes that are not downloaded manually will be removed automatically. The new download configuration should make a big difference for heavy podcast listeners (especially me !!) who can quickly collect downloads that eat up their device’s memory.
Spotify is testing NFT music galleries, even as the crypto market cools
Indispensable tokens of celebrities or NFT have had better days, but Spotify is applying a test that allows artists like Steve Aoki and The Wombats to show off their own. The new feature, which is available to some US-based Android users, was first announced by Music Ally.
The experimental update allows participating artists to display their NFT galleries prominently on their Spotify pages just below their playlists. But Spotify did not say whether the feature will be expanded. “We routinely conduct a series of tests in an attempt to improve the experience of artists and fans,” the company told Music Ally. “Some of these tests ultimately pave the way for a wider experience, while others serve only as important training.
It may seem like a strange time to promote NFT, just as the crypto market is collapsing and the number of NFT transactions is falling. But Aoki spoke with Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel in March about how the NFT could be a lifeline for musicians at the mercy of low streaming payouts. He said the NFT business “provides revenue and conversation in a way that has never happened before.”
If you don’t have Android and want to see what NFT on Aoki’s whales looks like, check out a song by my colleague Emma Roth.
Podcast highlights highlights
Although there were no appearances by Pete Davidson, the Interactive Advertising Bureau’s Podcast Upfront last week hosted a number of the biggest players in podcasting to present their best programming and statistics to advertisers. As the IAB made lofty estimates for the podcast industry of $ 4 billion by 2024, studios and publishers presented why they deserve a piece of this growing share. Here are some of the highlights:
- SiriusXM conducted its own survey on who the newest podcast listeners are and what they want. Recent podcast listeners are younger and more diverse in terms of race and gender than long-time podcast listeners. They also give priority to real crime and celebrity talk shows more than traditional listeners who flock to the news and sports. Comedy is still the number one genre for both.
- Wondery, which is owned by Amazon, has announced a number of new advertising agents and distribution deals. The company already has distribution agreements with top charts such as My Favorite Murder and SmartLess, in which the new episodes were released a week earlier exclusively on Amazon Music and Wondery Plus. The new deals take Wondery to the next level of shows, including Men in Blazers, Something Was Wrong, four Ten Percent Happier shows and two podcasts from Shut Up and Give Me Murder. All have a one-week exclusive window, except Men in Blazers, which will have no window, and Twenty Percent Happier, which will be completely exclusive.
- The companies announced program updates, including Sony Music, which debuted Bedtime Stories with Adam McKay, in which the writer and director improvised soothing stories; Slate, which increases the frequency of broadcasts What follows: TBD, mom and dad fight and work from once a week to twice a week; and iHeartMedia, which will launch a new LGBTQ + vertical of shows this summer in the mold of the Black Effect Podcast Network and My Cultura.
Although there was nothing terribly innovative, the direction of programming seems to correspond to the core of SXM’s discoveries. The podcast’s audience is younger and more diverse than it was a few years ago, and the greater focus on multicultural and entertainment content reflects that. Besides, the real criminal train will not be delayed soon. It’s none of my business, but people have spoken out.
Companies are increasing the cost of podcast advertising – a lot
The biggest walkers have remained pretty much the same, but podcast advertising budgets are growing rapidly. Virtual mental health company BetterHelp is again the number one advertiser on podcasts and not even close. According to Magellan’s AI report on advertising spending for the first quarter, BetterHelp spent more than $ 21 million on podcast advertising between January and March this year, more than twice the cost of the same period last year.
This budget is almost three times the second place spent HelloFresh in the first quarter and is not like HelloFresh save. With $ 7.7 million in podcast advertising costs, the direct consumer food kits company nearly doubled its budget during the year. ExpressVPN and Progressive (ranked fourth and fifth, respectively) also significantly increased advertising costs last year.
The findings underscore the IAB’s study of how the podcast industry will grow. While increased broadcasts and listeners play a role, companies’ willingness to spend more will be key to turning podcasting into a $ 2 billion industry this year and a $ 4 billion industry by 2024. You can download the comparative report for the first quarter of Magellan here.
The iPod is dead, but the podcast is alive
This is a bit of a rerun for Insiders, but I will shamelessly include my part of this weekend on how the iPod played a fleeting but crucial role in the development of the podcast. And don’t you know, two people claim that they independently combined “iPod” and “broadcast” to name a medium that we all know and love and stop at the spiral today. In addition, the unfortunate battle of Leo Laporte to rename it “netcast” (as in “internet broadcasting”). My sincere condolences to Leo did not catch.
See you next week, readers! For insiders, I’ll be back on Thursday with the latest information on pods.
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