This week, Tom Webster takes a look at Brand Fans, and how branded podcasts could actually grow the overall audience for podcasting.

• Written by Tom Webster
• Edited by Bryan Barletta
• Audio edited by Gavin Gaddis
• Hosted by ART19

Sounds Profitable: Narrated Articles is a production of Sounds Profitable. For more information, visit soundsprofitable.com.

Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting:
Wondery launches three podcast FAST channels on Amazon Freevee by Sara Guaglione  [Source]DTC Brands Experiment with Programmatic Podcast Ads but Find Mixed Results by Phoebe Bain [Source]Here’s how our top podcasts of the year get listeners to stay by Karen Burgess [Source]McDonald’s jingle, 20 years later by Alyssa Meyers [Source]As for the rest of the news… Spotify’s Q3 earnings show a surprise operating profit, and MarketingBrew gives 7 main takeaways on influencer marketing from Advertiser Week New York.

Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: Apple considers selling more podcast ads by Ashley CarmanNetflix’s Answer To Subscriber Churn? Fewer Ads by Alyssa BoyleThe 25-year-old media planner and the screenshot industrial complex by Brian MorrisseyHow major podcast players are moving ‘beyond’ audio formats by Ella SagarCTV Ad Targeting Is Getting More Advanced – But Data Quality Is Not by Alyssa Boyle

Here's what you need to know for this week in the business of podcasting:The Power of Brands in Podcasts, A Podcast Landscape StudySpotify’s Dave Byrne on brand safety, suitability measures.Study: listener prefer relevant podcast ads, more forgiving than with music.YouTube RSS Integration and AdvertisingQuick Hits:

• Confused About Video? The Listeners Aren’t! by Tom Webster. While the question “what is a podcast” can lead to complicated responses from podcasters, respondents to The Podcast Landscape study are pretty confident in what qualifies as a podcast.
• YouTube passes Netflix as top video source for teens by Kif Leswing. A long-running Piper Sandler study finds for the first time ever YouTube has passed Netflix as top video source for teens. Given the many podcasts Netflix has commissioned, one wonders how much teen traffic they’d regain if those podcasts were also available in the Netflix app. 
• Brands are taking notice of Gen Alpha by Jasmine Sheena. Given existing legislation makes existing targeting methods difficult as the oldest Gen Alpha member is 13, brands are resorting to more creative projects to meet younger audiences where they’re at, which could include the rising popularity of Kids & Family podcasts.
• ARN takeover bid for SCA by Chris Pash. If successful, the acquisition bid would lead to Australia having two national media organizations with independent ownership of each other. 
• Streaming-powered tools come to Spotify from PodNews. The new system will allow users to upload and monetize video podcasts on Spotify, access enhanced analytics reporting, and use a new clickable promo system to cross-promote an episode with other podcasts on Spotify.

Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting:Confused About Video? The Listeners Aren’t! by Tom WebsterMeet the MillennialsPublishers pitch their methods for growing and engaging audiences to marketers by Sara GuaglioneTV Measurement Is Transforming – But Buyers Need More Transparency by Alyssa Boyle…as for the rest of the news: As for the rest of the news… writer Will Page expresses concern that many authors still don’t know how Spotify’s royalty structure works for audiobooks, and Edison Research’s Share of Ear for in-car listening shows AM/FM radio consumption drops 21 percentage points for respondents whose primary vehicle has Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.

Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: Streaming-Powered Tools Coming to Spotify [Source]ARN takeover bid for SCA by Chris Pash [Source]Dave Byrne on Spotify’s “Sensitive Topics” Tech [Source]Why publishers are the new brand ambassadors by Kayleigh Barber [Source]…as for the rest of the news: a new AdExchanger Talks episode pleads with brands not to add terms like ‘Israel’ and ‘Hamas’ to keyword blocklists, and a new 30 second Allstate ad stresses ‘there’s a podcast about that.’ According to Magellan AI data, Allstate’s current estimated podcast ad spend for the year is a hair over $61,000 as of the end of September.

While the podcast industry frequently debates what qualifies ‘a podcast’, data from The Podcast Landscape shows podcast listeners have a pretty consistent idea. Tom Webster breaks down that data and what it can mean for YouTube as the biggest place for podcast discovery.  

• Written by Tom Webster
• Edited by Bryan Barletta
• Audio edited by Gavin Gaddis
• Hosted by ART19

Sounds Profitable: Narrated Articles is a production of Sounds Profitable. For more information, visit soundsprofitable.com.

Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting:YouTube Podcasts in the UK and The Youtube Advertising Conundrum by Adam Bowie [Source]Some Black-owned publications push back on MFA reform amid declining traffic by Kayleigh Barber and Sara Guaglione [Source]Why the time is now for agencies to establish a B2B arm by Jason Pollock [Source]…as for the rest of the news: YouTube launches new AI-powered tool to target popular videos related to specific cultural moments, and a new Crowd React Media study finds 63% of sports audiences engage with radio and/or podcasts.

Audio ads can be effective, but only if they’re not disruptive: report. By Alyssa Meyers [Source]“Without margin, there is no mission” by Ariel Shapiro [Source] What does the narrowing range of streaming service CPMs mean for advertisers? By Paul Verna [Source]YouTube passes Netflix as top video source for teens by Kif Leswing [Source]Brands are taking notice of Gen Alpha by Jasmine Sheena [Source]

Here's what you need to know for this week in the business of podcasting: Joint Statement on the Continued Integrity of the Download MetricHow Spreaker Detects OutliersThe Latino Podcast Listener Report 2023Breaking down Canada’s new podcast platform registration form.Quick Hits: Nearly Half of Data Use for Ad Targeting is Wrong by Jack Neff. A reminder to those in the podcast space to work with partners that are meticulous in both their accuracy and purging what they find to be inaccurate.TV and film producers prepare for potential post-strike production logjam by Tim Peterson. A predicament that could lead to more new productions being piloted as podcasts while they wait for the post-strike traffic jam to clear.Advertisers will spend $84 billion on ad fraud this year: report by Ryan Barwick. Problems like this exist in all mediums, but podcasting has an opportunity to collectively prioritize high-quality, vetted advertising inventory.Podchaser Brings Radio’s Relied-On Airchecks feature into 21st Century for Podcast Advertisers. Airchecks, adapted from the radio measurement standard, allow for podcast planning and campaign management in Podchaser.Audio Ad Data Breakthrough: Sonnant & Podder Merge Content Signals + Audience Demographics. The two companies have partnered to combine Sonnant’s content data with Podder’s demographic analytics.