Visit https://podnews.net/update/apple-podcasts-chart-patent for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Have you ever wondered how the Apple Podcast Charts worked? Today we link to its patent application from Apple, filed in 2006. Computing popularity based upon subscriptions appears to contain all the information we already know about the chart: that it's based upon subscriptions not downloads, and that more recent subscriptions count for more in the chart than older ones (that's the equation you can see in the excerpt above). The patent application, which has been abandoned, may not be the method that Apple now uses to calculate the charts, which seem to have been significantly strengthened since there was evidence of manipulation in mid 2018.
• In the UK, Spotify has launched My Dog's Favourite Podcast, an exclusive podcast for dogs produced with the RSPCA, an animal charity. Episodes are five hours long, and designed to keep your doggy company while you do human things. One UK newspaper has given it a review from a five year-old cockapoo called Herbie.
• iHeart-owned Inside Radio interviews former iHeart employee Owen Grover about Pocket Casts. "We have seen well over 20% growth in our number of users just in the past two months," Grover says.

4 ways to launch a membership (and grow it, too) — Launching a membership program this year? We pulled together best practices from some pros on launching, promoting, and growing your show's membership. Brought to you by Glow.

Network — Unique, independent, advertising-free podcast with global perspective seeks quality network to accelerate growth. The Hardest Word showcases real people making real apologies from across the globe.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Once-in-a-lifetime Podcaster Party @ Podfest! — Dueling piano party including an all-podcaster band and talent show for attendees....got a hidden talent? Show it off while rocking out at Podfest! Grab your tix now and be part of the fun.

The podcast conference of the year is next month! — Join podcasters and professionals from across the industry at EVOLUTIONS in February in Los Angeles. Code PODNEWS saves $50 off registration to be a part of the can't miss podcast event of the year!

• Libsyn has decided to "set the record straight" about whether Spotify is #1 or not, by publishing their app download figures for December to "help debunk the erroneous stories". They show 59.6% of downloads from Apple Podcasts and iTunes, and 11.6% from Spotify. Interestingly, Spotify has dropped from the 13% Libsyn reported in October. (In November, Libsyn became a passthrough destination for Spotify).
  • The MorganStanley and MIDiA data both measure people saying what podcast apps they use, not downloads. Everyone could be right: Spotify could be #1 for number of users; but Apple Podcasts appears to be #1 for downloads. Our Editor writes more on that.
• “I don’t really listen to podcasts” is the most important point of view in podcasting, says Dan Misener.
• uStudio, a secure corporate podcasting company, has produced a Podcast Content Guide, containing information on how to plan, market and set objectives for private podcasts.
• Developers: if it's interesting, here's how our podcast images work now.

• Do you need a co-host for your podcast? Some questions to help you decide, by Frank Racioppi
• Does your podcast need a trailer? Why, yes it does, says We Edit Podcasts. (It's also the thing Spotify will look for to help promote you, by the way). Here's ours

• NPR News Now is a brand new entry at #3 in the Podtrac top 20 US podcasts chart for December. The podcast, consisting of the latest hourly news bulletin from NPR, was previously excluded from the chart.
• The hosts of Call Her Daddy appear to have upset a columnist at the NYPost. "They lack the basic savvy and grace to make it in this industry", says Kirsten Fleming, adding "they're just really uptight frauds". Ouch. (Barstool Sports)
• The Murder Squad, a true-crime podcast released in March 2019, has helped lead to the arrest of a suspect in a 1980 killing, reports the Rolling Stone. (Exactly Right Media / Omny Studio)
• Give them Lala... with Randall launches next week: a new podcast from Lala Kent and her film producer fiancé Randall Emmett. WarnerMedia Podcast Network have signed a deal for the production, sales and promotion of 50 episodes. (Knit)
• In The Feed, Rob Walch shares total download numbers. "If your show is getting more than 130 downloads after 30 days you are better than half the shows out there." (Libsyn)
• Underunderstood, has been apologised-to, after it was told it had to pay $1,995 in licensing if it wanted to tell people it was chosen as one of the HuffPost's Podcasts of the Year. Lydia Polgreen, HuffPost's Editor in Chief, apologised "for the miscommunication", adding "we've made it clear to our third party that we do not want anyone charged for this" and "celebrate in any way you choose".

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Jar Audio, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, Spotify for Podcasters, Call for Content, Entale, Podcast Press, Evergreen Podcasts, Himalaya, We Edit Podcasts, The Roost, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, ART19, Knit, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Megaphone, Luminary, Libsyn, LaunchPod Media, Simplecast, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, Castbox, Heartcast Media50, podcast.co, Headliner, Podcast Success Academy, NPR, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Whooshkaa, The Venn, Podcast Taxi, Captivate, Bababam, audioBoom, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Dante 32, WaitWhat, Muddy Knees Media, Podcast Websites, Rebel Base Media, Synth, iHeartRadio, Poductivity, RockWater Industries, Pacific Content, Podcast Guests, Podcast Ad Report, radio.com, Lemonada Media, Podcast Design Studio, myTuner, Chartable, Oxford Road, Auxbus, StreamGuys, Benztown, EverythingWithPodcasting, Alitu, Podcast Partnership, Media Masters, DAX, echowave.io, Auscast Network, Content10x, StatsRadio, Creative Zombie Studios, Know or Not? Podcast Network, nlogic, Podiant, Ad Results Media, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, She Podcasts, Cleanfeed, Podknife, The Podcast Exchange, TopPodcast.com, Wondery, Podbean, School of Podcasting, Sonix, adswizz, Podcast Movement, Blubrry, Adopter Media, Stakhanov, Revolver Podcasts, Lower Street, Podigy, Cadence13, Margarita Noriega, The Talent Squad, Veritone One, Midroll, Pippa, Resonate Recordings, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Triton Digital, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Edison Research, Audience Insights Inc, Podrover

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/can-anyone-list for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Consent is not optional - for podcasts, too says Yann Reider, writing for Podnews. He argues that some podcasting businesses are "endangering the strange and potentially fragile equilibrium between listeners, creators, and the apps that connect them", by adding your podcast to their app without asking.
• iHeart Radio, which owns 850 radio stations and employs 12,500 people in the US, has announced a new organisational structure. There are layoffs, called "employee dislocations" by the company: numbers haven't been released, but are in the hundreds.
• The iHeart Radio Podcast Awards are tomorrow night. The awards will be streamed on iHeart's LiveXLive platform for US viewers only.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Be part of Podfest's podcast service marketplace! — Podfest is hosting an in-person marketplace where all kinds of service providers get to meet podcasters in real time and be hired on the spot! Buy your ticket to be part of the action!

Free, Lifetime Subscription To Podcast Magazine — Coming in January, Podcast Magazine is the preeminent podcast publication focused on taking readers 'beyond the microphone' and into the lives of today's leading podcasters. Subscribe Now For FREE!

Radiotopia's Ear Hustle Seeks a Talented Editor — PRX is seeking a full time, Bay-area based editor, play a key role in the production of Radiotopia's Ear Hustle. Apply by January 31, 2020 at https://apply.workable.com/prx/j/1F734FE646/

• MIDiA Research has published a response to their podcast study we reported on yesterday. The post clarifies the (prompted) question that was asked, and says "there are many podcasts which are still available on Apple Music".
• Is Spotify really bigger than Apple Podcasts? Adam Bowie, an audio researcher, looks into the data from MIDiA and Morgan Stanley, and compares Libsyn's actual download data.
• Google is to phase out user-agent strings in Chrome, and other browsers have said they will follow. User agents are used in podcasting to spot which platform is playing the audio; this won't affect that.
• HuffPost published a Best Podcasts of 2019 list recently, including an award for Underunderstood. The podcast reports that they've been asked for $1,995 for an "accolade licence" so they can tell people. This one's on us!
• Triton Digital's Australian Podcast Ranker for the four weeks to 22 Dec has been released. Hamish & Andy are still #1; the ABC are still not being reported. The highest new entry is 7am, a daily news podcast (which returns Jan 27th).
• Podcast Movement Dallas 2020 has opened a call for speaker proposals.

• How to book guests for your podcast - Tae Haahr has some good ideas: even covering whether you should pay them.
• [Three Things I’ve Learned From Editing Podcasts] by Jabriel AlSuhaimi includes a great way to spot guests clearing their throat or coughing.

• The Topical, the new satirical podcast from The Onion, has published its trailer: it launches on Jan 29. It's part of a new strategic partnership between The Onion and Sony Music Entertainment. (Megaphone)
• Obsessed with... Dracula is a new BBC TV companion podcast, highlighting the BBC's new show about the vampire. The show's also on Netflix in the US. (Chalk & Blade / BBC)
• Filter Stories, a coffee documentary podcast, is being promoted by RadioPublic today: their website was the first PodSite from the company. (Soundcloud)
• Novel Gazing is a brand new podcast from a book website, dedicated to news, recommendations, and general goings-on from the world of literary fiction. (Book Riot / Omny Studio)
• Eye on Potatoes is a podcast on all things potatoes, from the US's National Potato Council. We just thought you'd like to know it existed. It's hosted on Buzzsprout. Where else?

Thanks to our supporters we've been working on our podcast image generation tool, and have made the images better quality. They should, once more, change as publishers change them; no longer use the iTunes API; and ALT tags are now correct, boosting accessibility for those that need it.

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Jar Audio, Voxnest, Awesound, Acast, Podcorn, Evergreen Podcasts, We Edit Podcasts, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Megaphone, Call for Content, ART19, Entale, Knit, Luminary, Himalaya, The Roost, Libsyn, LaunchPod Media, Spotify for Podcasters, Simplecast, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Podcast Press, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, Whooshkaa, Podcast Success Academy, Podcast Websites, Bababam, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Synth, Heartcast Media50, myTuner, Podcast Taxi, iHeartRadio, Dante 32, Pacific Content, audioBoom, NPR, Lemonada Media, Muddy Knees Media, Podcast Guests, radio.com, WaitWhat, Poductivity, RockWater Industries, Captivate, Podcast Design Studio, Rebel Base Media, podcast.co, Podcast Ad Report, Castbox, Headliner, The Venn, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Oxford Road, echowave.io, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Benztown, Creative Zombie Studios, Media Masters, Ad Results Media, StatsRadio, Chartable, Content10x, StreamGuys, Alitu, DAX, Auxbus, Podiant, EverythingWithPodcasting, Auscast Network, Podcast Partnership, nlogic, She Podcasts, Podknife, Midroll, adswizz, The Podcast Exchange, Wondery, Lower Street, Resonate Recordings, Revolver Podcasts, TopPodcast.com, Blubrry, Margarita Noriega, Veritone One, Cleanfeed, Podigy, School of Podcasting, The Talent Squad, Cadence13, Pippa, Adopter Media, Sonix, Stakhanov, Podbean, Podcast Movement, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Audience Insights Inc, Triton Digital, Edison Research, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Podrover

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/spotify-beats-apple-podcasts-kind-of for all the links, and to subscribe.

• MIDiA Research has released data apparently showing that Spotify is more popular than Apple Podcasts in the UK, Australia and Canada: and is also "within margin of survey error" in the US. The chart, reported in The Motley Fool, also shows that Google Podcasts is virtually as popular as Apple Podcasts (which is not supported by any podcast consumption data we've seen), and that Apple Music is apparently a more popular podcast app than Stitcher or Downcast. It doesn't have any podcasts in it though?
• Podcasts are getting into the bathroom: Procter & Gamble have announced a $230 electric toothbrush with a voice-controlled Alexa smart-speaker built-in to the base.
• Global's DAX will be available to outdoor advertisers as well as audio advertisers next month. DAX, which now officially stands for "Digital Ad Exchange", originally launched in 2014, and allows programmatic advertising in audio streams and podcasts. They also have a new logo (see it below).

4 ways to launch a membership (and grow it, too) — Launching a membership program this year? We pulled together best practices from some pros on launching, promoting, and growing your show's membership. Brought to you by Glow.

Podcast Editing Made Easy! Podnews Extended Trial — Save time editing your podcast with Hindenburg Journalist PRO. Automatic sound leveling. Simple powerful turn dial noise reduction. Preset voice profiles for consistent sound. 1-click cloud publishing.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Promote your podcast to 1000s of avid listeners — sponsor Podcast Brunch Club to promote your podcast to an engaged podcast listener community that meets up IN PERSON monthly in 70+ cities across 6 continents to talk about podcasts

Don't miss Podfest this time! — Podfest is set to be at its biggest and best yet! New hotel, 14 pre-conference workshops, over 200 influential content creators and over 1500 attendees. Make sure one of them is YOU! March 6-8, 2020.

The podcast conference of the year is next month! — Join podcasters and professionals from across the industry at EVOLUTIONS in February in Los Angeles. Code PODNEWS saves $50 off registration to be a part of the can't miss podcast event of the year!

• Podnews will be at Salon de la Radio in Paris, France, next week; our Editor is talking on "ten things that radio can learn from podcasting". Want to catch up? Drop us a note. Want to go? Grab your free ticket here.
• Audioboom has renewed the sales contract for the next 24 months for "one of its most popular entertainment podcasts" with a financial guarantee of US$1.75m. An unusually opaque press release doesn't say who, other than "over the past year this podcast has been downloaded more than 140 million times", and promises further podcasts from "the content partner".
  • Wild Speculation Corner: Audioboom's own website's highlights two "entertainment" podcasts; and No Such Thing As A Fish has been with the network since September 2016. In 2017 it was doing 6m downloads per month (which may have doubled by now), and is described as a "key contract" in Audioboom's recent updates. But then, also described that way, and doing brilliantly, is The Totally Football Show.
• Podcasts: just old wine in a new bottle? An opinion piece in the Indian website Firstpost on the challenges to podcasting.

• Writing on Podcast Movement's website, Doug Fraser lets us know how long an interview should be.
• Resonate Recordings shares the full details about how to use Zoom, a popular app for interviewing people remotely.

• Our personal supporter Eric Hunley is host of Unstructured: and is the subject of an article in SquadCast's website. Here's how he produced 100 episodes in one year - while still juggling a day job! (Podbean)
• Snacks Daily, a financial news podcast from US stock trading company Robin Hood, has hit 10 million total downloads (Megaphone)
• Chasing Cosby is a new podcast from the Los Angeles Times. The paper writes about the process of tracking the story. (ART19)
• The team behind Entiende Tu Mente, a podcast about psychology in Spanish, have announced it is to become a Spotify exclusive. "We know that changes are not always easy, but you already know us and know that we take firm steps when we feel we should take them," they say. The host, Molo Cebrián, started an exclusive music podcast with Spotify in July 2018. (Spreaker)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Jar Audio, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, The Roost, Luminary, Knit, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, We Edit Podcasts, LaunchPod Media, Simplecast, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Himalaya, Call for Content, Spotify for Podcasters, Entale, Megaphone, Podcast Press, Evergreen Podcasts, ART19, Libsyn, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, Synth, Captivate, Muddy Knees Media, Rebel Base Media, Dante 32, RockWater Industries, WaitWhat, Heartcast Media50, Headliner, radio.com, Podcast Guests, Podcast Taxi, Whooshkaa, podcast.co, Podcast Websites, Bababam, Pacific Content, myTuner, Poductivity, NPR, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Lemonada Media, Castbox, Podcast Design Studio, iHeartRadio, audioBoom, Podcast Ad Report, Podcast Success Academy, The Venn, Podcast Partnership, echowave.io, Auscast Network, EverythingWithPodcasting, StatsRadio, Auxbus, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Content10x, Podiant, Alitu, StreamGuys, Creative Zombie Studios, Ad Results Media, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Media Masters, Oxford Road, Chartable, Benztown, DAX, nlogic, She Podcasts, Podigy, Revolver Podcasts, Pippa, Resonate Recordings, Veritone One, School of Podcasting, The Talent Squad, Cleanfeed, Podbean, Wondery, Cadence13, The Podcast Exchange, Podknife, Stakhanov, Blubrry, Midroll, Lower Street, Podcast Movement, Sonix, Margarita Noriega, TopPodcast.com, Adopter Media, adswizz, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Triton Digital, Edison Research, Audience Insights Inc, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Podrover

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/luminary-pricing-change for all the links, and to subscribe.

• EXCLUSIVE: Premium podcast service Luminary has announced new pricing: a significantly cheaper monthly plan: down from US$7.99 to $4.99, and a new annual plan at US$34.99 (about $2.99 a month). The company tells Podnews that the new prices are "based on the success of Luminary’s holiday promotion, our latest consumer research, and data insights about the evolving streaming content ecosystem". International pricing has also been reduced: the pricing is available in the app now.
  • The company has also announced returning shows from Trevor Noah, Lena Dunham, Roxane Gay & Tressie McMillan Cottom, Russell Brand, and more. "We also have new original shows debuting with Soledad O’Brien, Alex Gibney, Franklin Leonard, and Evan Narcisse, with more 2020 content to be announced soon."
• Podverse is a new-to-us app on the web, iOS and Android, that "makes it easy to create, share, and discover full-length clips from your favorite podcasts". The code is fully open source, and there are premium features for $10/year. (The Podnews podcast is on Podverse).
• Designed to honour audio fiction producers, the Audio Verse awards has announced winners for 2019. "The titans of modern audio drama have shown themselves capable of not only using audio to create new stories that have emotional impact, but even inspire their listeners to tell their own stories."

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Turn your podcast into an article — We take your audio and turn it into a high-quality article or blog post to boost your reach. *NEW YEAR SPECIAL* $50 for your first article. Check the website for info.

Rock Legend David Crosby Featured in New Podcast — A new podcast with Crosby in conversation with Steve Silberman—looking back at Crosby's collaborations with CSNY, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, Jerry Garcia, and his recent music and activism. Subscribe now!

Podfest is hosting micro-conferences! — Podfest admission includes these micro-cons on 3/6: Sports PodCon, Audio Drama Con, Military Creator Con, Pecha Kucha, Podcasting 101 (for beginners), The Business of Podcasting + more. Buy your tix!

• Cadence13 is to launch a podcast with Dr Brené Brown, a researcher and author. Meanwhile, Ireland's 'collaborative hub for the creative and the curious', HeadStuff is to launch a slate of new podcasts for 2020.
• Matriarch Digital Media is a network of podcasts where women "can be understood, encouraged and uplifted", says the Star Tribune in Minneapolis.
• New book: Make Noise, a creator's guide to podcasting and great audio storytelling, by Eric Nuzum, is now available from Workman Publishing. Today, our Editor reviews it: "You should rush out and grab a copy today. It’s a great investment, and will help you produce your best work."

• If you're making podcasts for businesses, don't just judge success by the downloads, says Yi Jing Fly - there's something much more important, she argues, using Dell and Netflix as examples.
• Jack Rhysider looks at the growth of his podcast, and suspects that 150 fans will be enough to make it grow: but you can do much more.

• Sam Walker, a former BBC radio presenter, changed her life from living in drizzly Manchester to take her family to the desert in Phoenix AZ, USA. Sam Walker's Desert Diaries promises "excitement, frustration, fear, joy, loneliness and scorpions". (Libsyn)
• The Baron of Botox tells the stranger-than-fiction story of an extraordinary doctor: the dermatologist to the stars Fredric Brandt, and his relationship with botox, collagen, and other skin treatments. (Imperative Entertainment / Endeavor Audio / Megaphone)
• Shane Whaley, the host of Tourpreneur, a podcast series and daily email briefing focused on the real-life stories of tour operators and the kind of information that matters to them, is interviewed about his career pivot from being a sales executive to podcaster.
• The GeekWire podcast has, in a recent edition, a discussion about the future of podcasting. Taking part: Phyllis Fletcher, senior editor for podcasts at American Public Media; Steve Henn, the head of content strategy for audio news at Google; David Payne, the president of Rainstream Media; and Amira Valliani, CEO and co-founder of Glow.

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Jar Audio, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, Knit, ART19, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Call for Content, We Edit Podcasts, LaunchPod Media, Podcast Press, Flick, Spotify for Podcasters, The Roost, Luminary, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Simplecast, Evergreen Podcasts, Entale, Megaphone, Libsyn, Himalaya, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, NPR, radio.com, RockWater Industries, myTuner, TeePublic, The Venn, Pacific Content, Muddy Knees Media, Podcast Websites, Podcast Taxi, Podcast Design Studio, PODSquad, WaitWhat, Heartcast Media50, Headliner, Whooshkaa, Bababam, Poductivity, Rebel Base Media, Podcast Ad Report, iHeartRadio, Dante 32, Captivate, podcast.co, audioBoom, Synth, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Podcast Guests, Podcast Success Academy, Lemonada Media, Content10x, DAX, Podcast Partnership, nlogic, Know or Not? Podcast Network, EverythingWithPodcasting, Auxbus, Alternate Thursdays, Auscast Network, StatsRadio, echowave.io, Oxford Road, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Benztown, Alitu, Creative Zombie Studios, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Chartable, Media Masters, Ad Results Media, Podiant, StreamGuys, She Podcasts, Blubrry, Wondery, Lower Street, School of Podcasting, Sonix, The Podcast Exchange, Resonate Recordings, Messy, Margarita Noriega, autopo.st, Cadence13, Podcast Movement, adswizz, Midroll, Pippa, Revolver Podcasts, BG AD Group, Jim Harold Media LLC, Podbean, Cleanfeed, TopPodcast.com, Adopter Media, Veritone One, Podigy, Stakhanov, Horse Radio Network, Podknife, The Talent Squad, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Triton Digital, Love Sport Radio, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Edison Research, Richard Dally, Audience Insights Inc, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/aussie-podcast-awards-return for all the links, and to subscribe.

• The Australian Podcast Awards are back for 2020, with plans to reflect the growing Australian podcast sector. The event moves from May to early November: entries open in July. "We’ll be delivering an even bigger ceremony and want to be even more representative of Australia’s audio makers," says founder Dave Gertler.
• In 2014, CBS was told to pay $1.3m for "violating a podcast patent"; which was ruled invalid by a court action in Aug 8 2017. A "final rejection" was given by the Supreme Court in May 15 2018. On Friday, Personal Audio LLC lost their appeal in the Federal Circuit, which means this - finally - goes away.
  • Podnews's Editor is a personal supporter of the EFF, who fought this case on podcasting's behalf. Here's where to join.
• Apple's "service revenue" was $46.3bn in their 2019 financial year from App Store sales and subscriptions to services like Apple Music.
  • Comparison: total revenue the entire US podcasting industry is estimated to have made in 2019: $678m
  • Comparison: total revenue Apple made directly from podcasting in 2019: $0

4 ways to launch a membership (and grow it, too) — Launching a membership program this year? We pulled together best practices from some pros on launching, promoting, and growing your show's membership. Brought to you by Glow.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Podgraphics; visual content for your podcast — Automated content creation service for podcasters. Podgraphics saves you time, if you dislike or don’t have the time to create “visually appealing” graphics to promote your podcast on social media.

Make A Real Living Podcasting — Learn how to find sponsors, negotiate rates, write good copy and more. Course taught by indie podcasters with 6-figure ad revenue. Recoup your investment and make real money from your podcast!

Podfest is around the corner! — The Podfest Multimedia Expo is coming up March 6-8 in sunny Orlando! Over 1500 attendees and over 200 influencers ready to teach what you need to take that next step in your content. Join us!

Radiotopia's Ear Hustle Seeks a Talented Editor — PRX is seeking a full time, Bay-area based editor, play a key role in the production of Radiotopia's Ear Hustle. Apply by January 31, 2020 at https://apply.workable.com/prx/j/1F734FE646/

The podcast conference of the year is next month! — Join podcasters and professionals from across the industry at EVOLUTIONS in February in Los Angeles. Code PODNEWS saves $50 off registration to be a part of the can't miss podcast event of the year!

Podnews uses Sendy to send our emails — Sendy works like Mail...Climp, but no monkeying around with big bills. Run a mailing list for your podcast or business? Discover your savings.

• Dirty John seems to be the favourite true-crime podcast in California, while Maryland is still keen on Serial, according to a study from Kastle Systems on the 'most popular true crime podcast per US state'. It's actually based on search queries through Google, not downloads.
• Voice and smart-speakers were "omnipresent" at CES, says Steven Goldstein in a look back at the tech show.
• Barstool Sports is about to be bought by a casino operator, if Vox is to be believed. They announced in August that podcasts make a third of the company's revenue.
• Casper Mattresses is going for an IPO. In its documents, we learn that for every $1,000 Caspar mattress, it spends $290 on ads, including a lot of podcast ads.
• Our podcast pages now mention all "podcast prefix" companies in use, and we link to their privacy policies. We also now link to podcast hosts privacy policies as well in these pages. Here's an example And we've added a full list of podcast hosts.
• Developers: here's a list of all "podcast prefix" companies, and links to their privacy policies; and a list of all podcast hosting companies, including non-retail ones, with links to their privacy policies. You're welcome to make amendments.

• What assets do you need to start your podcast? Less than you think, says Tae Haahr.
• Quality and consistency are key for podcasting, says Origins Media Haus.

Thank you - we hit 11,500 subscribers over the weekend. Welcome to new readers at Spotify, YEA Networks, Muddy Knees Media, The Orchard, Castbox, Acast, and Ngā Taonga - New Zealand's audiovisual archive.

• Blood Ties, the new drama podcast from Wondery, is driving podcast fans crazy with delight, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. (ART19)
• Equity, the podcast from TechCrunch focused on venture capital, now has a Monday edition - a short episode designed to get your week started. (Simplecast)
• Something Rhymes with Purple, a podcast about language, has a live show next Tues Jan 14. (Somethin'Else)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Jar Audio, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, LaunchPod Media, Podcast Press, Himalaya, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Entale, Evergreen Podcasts, ART19, Simplecast, Megaphone, We Edit Podcasts, The Roost, Call for Content, Luminary, Knit, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Spotify for Podcasters, Flick, Libsyn, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, TeePublic, audioBoom, Podcast Websites, Poductivity, Lemonada Media, Podcast Taxi, The Venn, Captivate, podcast.co, Podcast Ad Report, Headliner, Bababam, Whooshkaa, Podcast Success Academy, WaitWhat, Podcast Guests, NPR, Rebel Base Media, Muddy Knees Media, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Dante 32, radio.com, Podcast Design Studio, Pacific Content, PODSquad, RockWater Industries, Heartcast Media50, myTuner, iHeartRadio, Synth, StatsRadio, Media Masters, StreamGuys, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Creative Zombie Studios, DAX, Auxbus, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Podiant, echowave.io, Oxford Road, Ad Results Media, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Content10x, Chartable, nlogic, Auscast Network, Alternate Thursdays, Alitu, EverythingWithPodcasting, Benztown, Podcast Partnership, She Podcasts, Blubrry, Lower Street, Podknife, Sonix, Cleanfeed, Veritone One, Stakhanov, Cadence13, TopPodcast.com, Midroll, Wondery, Resonate Recordings, BG AD Group, Messy, autopo.st, Jim Harold Media LLC, adswizz, Podbean, Horse Radio Network, Podcast Movement, Margarita Noriega, School of Podcasting, Adopter Media, The Talent Squad, The Podcast Exchange, Podigy, Revolver Podcasts, Pippa, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Audience Insights Inc, Love Sport Radio, Richard Dally, Triton Digital, Edison Research, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/italian-podcast-listeners for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Data: IPSOS Italia released their Digital Audio Survey last month. 26% of Italians (aged 16-60) listened to podcasts in the last 30 days: that figure compares to 36% in Canada. (Grazie, Digital MDE!)
• The Reuters Institute have published their Journalism, Media, and Technology Trends and Predictions 2020. It points to growth for podcasting beyond the English language; predicts more daily news podcasts; and notes: "Sports outlet The Athletic has noticed that people who engage with one of its podcasts during the free seven-day trial period are much more likely to buy an annual subscription to the site."
• The Conversation writes about the speedy evolution of podcast and audio storytelling, adding that podcasting - not radio - has quickly become the natural home of audio fiction.

4 ways to launch a membership (and grow it, too) — Launching a membership program this year? We pulled together best practices from some pros on launching, promoting, and growing your show's membership. Brought to you by Glow.

Exclusive: Man Apologizes to Monkey — The Hardest Word is unique. Each five minute episode showcases a real person apologizing. Variously heartbreaking, gobsmacking, funny, relatable, weird. And yes, we have a man apologizing to a monkey.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Influencer Response launches NEW website — loaded with case studies, testimonials and more. Influencer Response is one of the fastest growing podcast and influencer marketing agencies with a strategic focus on direct response results.

Subscribe to Masks & Martyrs — Set in the city of Hintila, the last jewel in a crumbling empire, a band of unlikely allies find themselves forced to play a part in a game far larger and more sinister than they could hope to grasp.

Prices going up TONIGHT for Podfest! — Buy now and save $$ on your ticket to one of the largest podcast conferences, based at the World Marriott in Orlando, FL 3/6-8. This is the last time you'll see this deal - so purchase now!

• One of China's largest interactive podcast platforms, Lizhi has set a price target for its US IPO next week, and looks set to raise US $61.3m. The company made $116m in 2018, almost reaching profitability (a loss of $1m).
• The Google Podcasts Android App has a new 'account switcher'. You can also switch the podcast app to operate "without an account", i.e. a kind-of incognito mode that doesn't save history (and doesn't let you subscribe).
  • 571 days since the launch of Google Podcasts, the company is still operating Google Play Music Podcasts, a competing but otherwise separate product, with no signposting between the two.

• Walt Mossberg, a respected US tech journalist, says that Spotify's podcast ad targeting technology (Jan 9) is a planned violation of privacy, adding: "Most podcasts are already narrow enough that sponsors can do a decent job of figuring out where to place their ads. There’s no justification for offering them targeting based on personal information."
• Spotify is criticised for hosting anti-semitic playlists. The company says it will remove them.
• The company is posting its fourth quarter 2019 financial results on Feb 5.

• Dan Misener explains how Pacific Content develops new shows with brands. One of their favourite show development exercises: "This meets that".
• Resonate Recordings answer the question What Podcast Directories Should I Be On?

• Up and Vanished is coming to Oxygen, a US true-crime TV channel. Here's the trailer: it airs Feb 15 in the US, and presumably will also air on the channel in Australia. (Tenderfoot TV / Megaphone)
• Launching simultaneously in the US, Brazil and Mexico, Parcast has released a podcast about secret societies, called Secret Societies. It joins a show about mythology called Mythology, a series about con artists called Con Artists, and episodes about serial killers called Serial Killers. In case you missed it, LaunchPod Media's John Dinkel says this is not an accident.
• The Catch and Kill Podcast, which covers the systems that protect powerful men accused of terrible crimes in Hollywood and beyond, gets a full review from Podcast Review, describing one episode as "38 powerful minutes of podcasting that puts into perspective how precarious these acts were and continue to be". (Pineapple Street Studios / Megaphone)
• A new episode of Tradeoffs details how a promising solution to the US's skyrocketing healthcare costs -- one that health care executives here have invested years and millions of dollars in -- doesn't actually work.
• Le Profil de L'Emploi is the first podcast from LinkedIn in France, produced by Europe 1 Studio.
• Thank you to Hysteria 51, which has joined Podnews as a personal supporter today. It's a weekly podcast that takes an every-man approach to the World of the Weird. (And it's in the chart in eleven countries!) (Buzzsprout)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Jar Audio, Voxnest, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, Himalaya, Spotify for Podcasters, We Edit Podcasts, Flick, Knit, LaunchPod Media, Libsyn, Megaphone, ART19, Podcast Press, The Roost, Evergreen Podcasts, Simplecast, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Entale, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Call for Content, Luminary, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: 17 Questions, The Big Shot, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, Rebel Base Media, podcast.co, myTuner, Podcast Guests, RockWater Industries, Dante 32, TeePublic, PODSquad, Lemonada Media, Podcast Design Studio, Synth, NPR, Podcast Websites, WaitWhat, Bababam, Poductivity, Podcast Taxi, Whooshkaa, Podcast Ad Report, radio.com, The Venn, iHeartRadio, Muddy Knees Media, audioBoom, Podcast Success Academy, Headliner, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Heartcast Media50, Pacific Content, Captivate, Podcast Partnership, Creative Zombie Studios, Benztown, Auscast Network, Alitu, Podiant, Chartable, DAX, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Know or Not? Podcast Network, StreamGuys, Media Masters, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, EverythingWithPodcasting, nlogic, Ad Results Media, Alternate Thursdays, StatsRadio, Auxbus, echowave.io, Content10x, Oxford Road, She Podcasts, BG AD Group, Revolver Podcasts, autopo.st, Resonate Recordings, Podcast Movement, Podknife, Podbean, Wondery, Sonix, Lower Street, Veritone One, Cadence13, Margarita Noriega, Adopter Media, Messy, Jim Harold Media LLC, adswizz, Stakhanov, Midroll, Horse Radio Network, Podigy, TopPodcast.com, Blubrry, The Podcast Exchange, School of Podcasting, Cleanfeed, The Talent Squad, Pippa, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Love Sport Radio, Triton Digital, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Richard Dally, Edison Research, Audience Insights Inc, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/spotify-targeted-advertising for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Spotify has announced Spotify Podcast Ads, a method of targeting advertising for listeners within its exclusive podcasts. The announcement promises that advertisers can target listeners based on age or gender, as well as reach and frequency. Covering the story, The Verge says that premium users will still hear these ads (just as they do with non-Spotify Original podcasts).
  • Inevitably, the idea of more targeted advertising has concerned some. Pat Walshe, a privacy campaigner, has posted information on Spotify's sharing of listener data with third parties, and the company was the subject of an investigation by Swedish Data Protection officers in June, which does not, yet, appear resolved. Another point of view is that advertising for products that are unavailable in a listener's country or irrelevant to the listener's needs, are not advertising but just an unwanted, useless, interruption.
  • Talking about podcast advertising, try this clip from Family Guy, broadcast last Sunday.
  • Elsewhere: Spotify is working on daily sports podcasts, says Bloomberg; and yesterday we reported Morgan Stanley's survey saying that Spotify now was more popular than Apple Podcasts. On Twitter, With A Side of Knowledge wondered about that, and ran a poll. Surprise!
• More than half of US adults use voice assistants, says new research from Edison Research and NPR. 24% of the population - 60m people - own at least one smart speaker device (and typical smart-speaker households now have 2.6 devices).
• A survey in Nigeria about podcasting from Tony Doe Media has revealed that Nigerian podcast listeners are mainly male, and aged below 35. Additionally, almost half of Nigerian podcast listeners prefer podcasts under 40 minutes - a stat we've added to our how long should a podcast be page.

Exclusive: Man Apologizes to Monkey — The Hardest Word is unique. Each five minute episode showcases a real person apologizing. Variously heartbreaking, gobsmacking, funny, relatable, weird. And yes, we have a man apologizing to a monkey.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Rock Legend David Crosby Featured in New Podcast — A new podcast with Crosby in conversation with Steve Silberman—looking back at Crosby's collaborations with CSNY, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, Jerry Garcia, and his recent music and activism. Subscribe now!

Prices going up 1/10 for Podfest — Buy now and save $$ on your ticket to one of the largest podcast conferences, based at the World Marriott in Orlando, FL 3/6-8. This is the last time you'll see this deal - so purchase now!

Get involved with the Publisher Podcast Awards — Want to reach editors and podcast makers at publishing companies? Find out how to sponsor our awards.

• Jar Audio, a Vancouver BC, Canada-based company that "produces branded podcasts that you can't turn off", has announced that it expanding, working with Expedia on Out Travel The System, and Hello Movies, a film interview podcast for Cineplex Entertainment.
• David Axelrod's The Axe Files podcast is leaving Luminary, and returning to CNN Podcasts. It was one of Luminary's launch podcasts; and is the first major defection from the subscription platform.
• Jacaranda FM in South Africa is celebrating record download figures, even if awareness of podcasting is quite low in the country, says the company's podcast host, iono·fm.
• Darling New Media in Sacramento CA is launching a podcast recording studio. The company got over three minutes on Good Day, a local breakfast TV show.
• We bet you wished your studio looked as glamorous as this one in Paris in 1922.

Thank you to Jar Audio for becoming our latest Gold Supporter. You can be like them.

• Are you wanting to be a podcast guest? Here's how to record yourself - and why you might want to do that. (Chris Ashmore)
• Your advice, please. We wrote How to use commercial music in your podcasts a while back. It's quite popular, even if it's quite a few pages saying the word "No you can't" repeatedly. But where can you get music for your podcast? We'd love your feedback on the places you use (paid or not); just hit reply.

Things Going On In The News Special

• Truth and Lies: Jeffrey Epstein launches today from ABC News in the US. Is there more to this story that has already been uncovered? ABC News’ Mark Remillard, reporting with the ABC News Investigative Unit, looks into the story and interviews those involved. (ABC News US, Wide Orbit)
• Things That Go Boom has a special edition about Iran, the US, and President Donald Trump's authority to launch nuclear missiles. How worried should we be? (PRX / InkStick Media)
• Palace Intrigue: A daily Royal Family podcast is the best place to hear an amazing fairytale story about a prince called Harry and a princess called Meghan wanting to get away from their evil grandmother's family by escaping to Canada, only to find their evil grandmother's picture is still on all the money. (Libsyn)
• The Gays Are Revolting have raised over a thousand dollars for the Victorian bushfires appeal, selling tickets to two live shows in Melbourne and Sydney. "Our home is on fire, and our leaders have their head in the sand", says one of the hosts Mykiii Rangi, which, if we were allowed to express an opinion, we'd agree with. (Lipp Media / Acast)
• With all the news going on, here's a thing to get away from it all. Happy LDN Press are running a collection of short stories read by the authors for listeners to enjoy during their coffee break. "Some stories are dark, some are romantic and we even have some children's stories," they tell us. (Anchor)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Jar Audio, Voxnest, Awesound, Acast, Podcorn, Spotify for Podcasters, The Roost, We Edit Podcasts, Entale, Simplecast, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Podcast Press, Himalaya, Luminary, ART19, Libsyn, Megaphone, Knit, LaunchPod Media, Flick, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Evergreen Podcasts, Call for Content, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: 17 Questions, The Big Shot, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, NPR, Podcast Taxi, Heartcast Media50, iHeartRadio, Glisten Media Podcast Production, RockWater Industries, Whooshkaa, Podcast Ad Report, radio.com, Poductivity, Synth, audioBoom, Headliner, Rebel Base Media, Bababam, Dante 32, PODSquad, WaitWhat, Pacific Content, The Venn, Podcast Websites, Lemonada Media, podcast.co, myTuner, Podcast Guests, Podcast Design Studio, Captivate, Podcast Success Academy, TeePublic, Muddy Knees Media, Benztown, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Media Masters, StreamGuys, Auxbus, Podcast Partnership, DAX, Auscast Network, Ad Results Media, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Alitu, echowave.io, Chartable, Podiant, nlogic, StatsRadio, Creative Zombie Studios, Content10x, Oxford Road, Alternate Thursdays, EverythingWithPodcasting, Sonic Influencer Marketing, She Podcasts, Podknife, autopo.st, Cleanfeed, The Talent Squad, Jim Harold Media LLC, Wondery, Horse Radio Network, Revolver Podcasts, Messy, BG AD Group, TopPodcast.com, The Podcast Exchange, Resonate Recordings, Lower Street, Stakhanov, Podbean, Blubrry, adswizz, Veritone One, Midroll, Margarita Noriega, Podigy, Sonix, Podcast Movement, Pippa, Adopter Media, Cadence13, School of Podcasting, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Richard Dally, Audience Insights Inc, Love Sport Radio, Triton Digital, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Edison Research, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/spotify-beats-apple-in-us for all the links, and to subscribe.

• In a private note for investors, Morgan Stanley has published its 6th Annual Audio Entertainment Survey. The survey notes that Spotify is now the most popular podcast platform in the US, claiming 24% of podcast listeners surveyed used Spotify while 21% used Apple Podcasts. Spotify seems to be growing, rather than Apple declining. The research also claims that people are finding it harder to discover new podcasts, not easier. The survey was conducted online, interviewing a nationally representative 1,961 US adults.
• Don't hide your potty mouth, say Apple. In an apparently new section of the Apple Podcast requirements, Apple tell you to use full swear-words: "All words should be completely spelled out and should not be censored. Apple Podcasts automatically censors certain explicit words in titles. Don’t insert the asterisks yourself". (HT: Daniel J Lewis)
  • We don't use the censored titles in Podnews, so you can compare this Anchor podcast on Apple with our naughtier listing of it; or this Podbean title on Apple with our listing. In both cases, the artwork contains the potty-mouthed word, though. The naughty words are not censored in Castbox, Overcast, Luminary, Podchaser, RadioPublic and Spotify; and this one isn't censored in Google Podcasts either.
• Nick and Caroline from HotPod have published their predictions of the big stories in podcasting they expect to be covering this year.
  • Meanwhile, RAIN was sent 153 predictions about podcasting in 2020. Yikes!

Build a membership program that listeners love — You want to build a membership program, but don't know what to offer? We've got your back. Check out this guide from Glow on creating memberships that your listeners will love and pay for.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Free, Lifetime Subscription To Podcast Magazine — Coming in January, Podcast Magazine is the preeminent podcast publication focused on taking readers 'beyond the microphone' and into the lives of today's leading podcasters. Subscribe Now For FREE!

Rock Legend David Crosby Featured in New Podcast — A new podcast with Crosby in conversation with Steve Silberman—looking back at Crosby's collaborations with CSNY, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, Jerry Garcia, and his recent music and activism. Subscribe now!

Prices going up 1/10 for Podfest — Buy now and save $$ on your ticket to one of the largest podcast conferences, based at the World Marriott in Orlando, FL 3/6-8. This is the last time you'll see this deal - so purchase now!

Radiotopia's Ear Hustle Seeks a Talented Editor — PRX is seeking a full time, Bay-area based editor, play a key role in the production of Radiotopia's Ear Hustle. Apply by January 31, 2020 at https://apply.workable.com/prx/j/1F734FE646/

• The Publisher Podcast Awards have published their shortlist of podcasts up for an award. The event is in London in March.
• Kaveinthran Pulanthran, a blind podcast listener, has done an accessibility review of Podchaser, Podyssey and Listen Notes. There is work to be done for all three websites. As he adds: accessibility is a design principle, not a feature to be added later. (We would welcome feedback on our accessibility).
• Podtrac have released December's top podcast publisher list, which is now a top 15 and shows a sales contact. The data is US-only, opt-in and incomplete. It faces competition from Triton Digital's Podcast Ranker, which launches later this year.
• Podcast Movement have announced a new set of speakers for Podcast Movement Evolutions. Our Editor is speaking about international podcasting trends.
• Matt Saraceni, formerly of Omny Studio and Telstra, has joined Australian broadcaster SCA as "Innovation Director - Audio on Demand".
• Want to get to know the person responsible for featuring podcasts on Pocket Casts? Darian Muka, Content Creator for Pocket Casts, talks about how to get your show featured on the Podcasting Essentials podcast in the latest episode.
  • We love people called Darian, and would do anything - anything - for them. Anything at all. Especially people who work in Brooklyn, they're the best kinds of Darian. Coincidentally, we have a podcast, too! Who'd have thought it? Have a great day! etc

Thank you to the premier podcast sales network The Roost for becoming our first Gold Supporter of 2020. They offer a "full-service, high-touch sales team that understands where your brand fits creatively in order to deliver the most dynamic reads and results". You can be like them.

• What are the benefits of building a podcast website? Resonate Recordings tells us why they can be very powerful.
• How can you do better interviews on your podcast? There's one thing that makes all the difference, says Joey Held.

• Michael Moore has launched a new podcast, says BoingBoing - describing it as "rage-filled optimism". It's called Rumble and is hosted on Anchor.
• Immigrantly is a podcast from a Pakistani American human rights activist, which explores racial identity, culture, and class through the lens of immigrant experiences. Some episodes have made it to public radio; season five has just launched. (Libsyn)
• We Stan Together is a brand new podcast that presents theories, dissertations, STANments about a piece of pop-culture. Episode topics include Singers Trying to Act, and 80’s Ladies Pop Stars. (More Banana / Megaphone)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Acast, Podcorn, Call for Content, Simplecast, Libsyn, Podcast Press, Luminary, ART19, Megaphone, LaunchPod Media, Evergreen Podcasts, Knit, The Roost, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Spotify for Podcasters, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Flick, Entale, Himalaya, We Edit Podcasts, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, Whooshkaa, The Venn, Heartcast Media50, podcast.co, Rebel Base Media, Podcast Taxi, Headliner, Muddy Knees Media, Dante 32, NPR, Synth, TeePublic, iHeartRadio, radio.com, Lemonada Media, WaitWhat, Captivate, audioBoom, PODSquad, Bababam, RockWater Industries, myTuner, Podcast Websites, Poductivity, Pacific Content, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Podcast Guests, Podcast Success Academy, Podcast Ad Report, Podcast Design Studio, Content10x, Benztown, Chartable, Alitu, Auxbus, Alternate Thursdays, Creative Zombie Studios, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Media Masters, Podiant, Oxford Road, Auscast Network, DAX, nlogic, echowave.io, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, EverythingWithPodcasting, StreamGuys, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Podcast Partnership, Ad Results Media, StatsRadio, She Podcasts, School of Podcasting, Jim Harold Media LLC, Blubrry, Revolver Podcasts, Podigy, Sonix, Wondery, Podcast Movement, Margarita Noriega, Adopter Media, Lower Street, autopo.st, Pippa, Stakhanov, Cadence13, Horse Radio Network, BG AD Group, Cleanfeed, Podknife, Podbean, The Podcast Exchange, Messy, Midroll, TopPodcast.com, adswizz, Resonate Recordings, The Talent Squad, Veritone One, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Richard Dally, Triton Digital, Edison Research, Love Sport Radio, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Audience Insights Inc, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/congress-archiving for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Podcasts are here forever: the US Library of Congress is adding podcasts to its archive "as part of its mission to collect and preserve sound recordings". It is currently writing to selected podcasters to ask permission to add their show to Library collections, preserve it, and provide public access to it, including online. The British Library's Sound Archive is doing similar.
• Podcasting is gaining ground, says an article in RadioWorld, looking at the future for radio broadcasters. Our Editor chimes in with his thoughts.
• A new podcast content creation company, No One Else, has launched in Hollywood CA, USA, utilizing "a vast network of television writers and producers".

Did you ever listen a let's play — Each month, "Listen to the Game" is playing a video game and allows you to explore its universe. No additional sound, no speech, just the sound design. A new game each month. Produced by Podcut.

10ish Podcast — Comedy, edutainment podcast covering a new Top 10ish List every week.

Podcast Editing Made Easy! Podnews Extended Trial — Save time editing your podcast with Hindenburg Journalist PRO. Automatic sound leveling. Simple powerful turn dial noise reduction. Preset voice profiles for consistent sound. 1-click cloud publishing.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Promote your podcast to 1000s of avid listeners — sponsor Podcast Brunch Club to promote your podcast to an engaged podcast listener community that meets up IN PERSON monthly in 70+ cities across 6 continents to talk about podcasts

• Naming your next podcast? John Dinkel, CEO and Co-Founder of LaunchPod Media, writes for Podnews today, saying that Parcast is the most powerful podcast agency in the world for one simple reason.
• People:
  • Magellan AI, which analyzes ads read by hosts of over 15,000 podcasts, has a new Head of Sales and Business Development. John Gorforth joins from the iHeart Podcast Network.
  • Dan Brady has been promoted to Director of Podcast Operations & Program Audio at Take On the Day, LLC, the radio production company co-owned by Dr Laura.
  • Megaphone has announced David Cohn as Head of Sales. He joins from WarnerMedia.
  • Paul Bennun has been appointed Chief Content Officer for Santa Monica's KCRW, he's announced on social media. British, Paul was Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer at UK audio production company Somethin'Else. He's a nice man and we wish him well.
• Podfest has announced Conal Byrne (iHeart Podcast Network) and Holly Frey (Stuff You Missed In History Class) as keynote speakers at their event in Orlando FL, Mar 6-8. Tickets go up in price on Friday.
• Event: Australian Podcasters Collaborative Live, Fri Sep 4, Sydney NSW, Australia. Our Editor is one of the confirmed speakers.
• The One World Media Awards 2020 are open for entries. The awards are open to journalists from across the world, and have a specific award for audio as well as many multi-platform awards. The awards celebrate and recognise the best media coverage of developing countries, and Podnews's Editor was, quite some time ago, a judge. Here's where to enter
• We liked this so much, we forgot to actually link to it yesterday. In Forbes, a great piece about the excellent Paul Bae, director of the new Marvel Studios podcast Marvels. The article was written by Joshua Dudley.

• There's a definite skill to interviewing. Here are six tips to improve your interview technique from the host of Demystifying Media at the University of Oregon.
• Last year, to our horror, we reported stats that 26% of podcasters don't wear headphones when they record. Squadcast post three benefits of using headphones.

Regular readers will know that this newsletter is published in Australia, which is in the news at the moment because of the bushfires.

To answer the two questions we've been asked most over the past few weeks: a) yes, we're fine, thanks - the fires near us were very smokey a few weeks ago, but they're unlikely to spread. Some of our family have been less lucky though; b) here is where to donate. Thanks!

• The subject of an IndieGoGo campaign that we reported on at the end of August, serial fiction podcast VALENCE is released this Saturday. The podcast, according to its press release, features veteran sound designer Julia Schifini and a cast of both veteran and newcomer actors in the audio fiction space; it's written by Wil Williams and Katie Youmans. (Pinecast)
• Unwell, a Midwestern Gothic Mystery returns for a second season tomorrow. Highly praised by listeners and critics alike, the audio fiction podcast "takes us even deeper into the mystery of Mount Absalom, including explorations of the Burning Woods and the Mount Absalom Observatory, and both new and familiar faces". (Libsyn)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, ART19, Spotify for Podcasters, Evergreen Podcasts, We Edit Podcasts, Entale, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Knit, Flick, LaunchPod Media, Simplecast, Call for Content, Himalaya, Megaphone, Podcast Press, Libsyn, Luminary, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: 17 Questions, The Big Shot, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, Podcast Success Academy, Poductivity, The Roost, Bababam, Whooshkaa, RockWater Industries, podcast.co, Captivate, The Venn, Dante 32, audioBoom, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Podcast Guests, Heartcast Media50, Rebel Base Media, WaitWhat, Muddy Knees Media, Lemonada Media, TeePublic, NPR, Synth, Podcast Taxi, myTuner, PODSquad, Podcast Ad Report, radio.com, iHeartRadio, Headliner, Podcast Websites, Podcast Design Studio, Pacific Content, Auscast Network, echowave.io, Ad Results Media, Oxford Road, Podcast Partnership, Podiant, nlogic, Alitu, StreamGuys, Chartable, Alternate Thursdays, Content10x, Auxbus, StatsRadio, Benztown, Media Masters, Creative Zombie Studios, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Know or Not? Podcast Network, DAX, EverythingWithPodcasting, She Podcasts, Messy, BG AD Group, Margarita Noriega, Revolver Podcasts, Cadence13, Podbean, The Talent Squad, adswizz, Blubrry, Jim Harold Media LLC, Veritone One, Midroll, Pippa, Cleanfeed, Stakhanov, Lower Street, School of Podcasting, TopPodcast.com, Podigy, The Podcast Exchange, Podknife, Adopter Media, Sonix, Resonate Recordings, Horse Radio Network, Wondery, Podcast Movement, autopo.st, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Love Sport Radio, Audience Insights Inc, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Richard Dally, Triton Digital, Edison Research, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/podchaser-recommendations for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Podcast discovery website Podchaser has added a recommendation feature. You can recommend podcasts, episodes or creators to your friends on the service or via email - and we like their example of a creator to follow.
• There's quite a bit of activity at the moment about podcast discovery. So, Podcast Discovery has just been launched: a website and newsletter focusing on the latest advances in this area.
• Canadian podcast producer Fable and Folly Productions have produced what they call the missing Patreon dashboard - containing a set of supplemental metrics and data from your own Patreon account. "Building a community is about revenue, audience growth and retention. In other words, it’s a business. And we believe it’s time we start measuring it like one," said the company's EP, Sean Howard.
  • If you're on the hunt for a Patreon-like alternative membership service, Steady is one: it's based in Berlin. And, in the Netherlands, there's Petje·af, an independent dutch-language solution. (HT: Podpraat)

Podcast Discovery Sucks - Find New Podcasts Now — Subscribe to Find That Pod – A weekly newsletter bringing you 5 new Podcasts you’ll want to listen to each week. It's that simple. Subscribe today!

Build a membership program that listeners love — You want to build a membership program, but don't know what to offer? We've got your back. Check out this guide from Glow on creating memberships that your listeners will love and pay for.

Did you ever listen a let's play — Each month, "Listen to the Game" is playing a video game and allows you to explore its universe. No additional sound, no speech, just the sound design. A new game each month. Produced by Podcut.

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Rock Legend David Crosby Featured in New Podcast — A new podcast with Crosby in conversation with Steve Silberman—looking back at Crosby's collaborations with CSNY, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, Jerry Garcia, and his recent music and activism. Subscribe now!

• Podbay is a new-to-us podcast player in your browser. It does a good job of displaying episodes and lets you subscribe to your favourite podcast. (HT: Ileane Smith)
• Pod Bible, a printed magazine in the UK, have unveiled the results of their reader poll of the best podcasts of last year. The winners, all British, span bigger and smaller shows.
• In Forbes, a great piece about the excellent Paul Bae, director of the new Marvel Studios podcast Marvels - written by Joshua Dudley.
• Should you encode your podcast in MP3 or AAC/M4A? We did some research.
• "Don't forget to change your podcast, and website, copyright year to 2020" say a few clever people on Facebook.
• Event: as part of the Detroit Writing Room Speakers Series, there's an event focusing on "some of the best podcasters in Metro Detroit". Metro Detroit Podcasters is on Thu Jan 16 in Detroit MI, USA, and is just $35.
• Event: PodUK, "a one-day celebration of UK Podcasting", is less than a month away on Feb 1, in Birmingham, UK. They've published their full speaker schedule.
• Event: Earshot Strategies are running a Podcasting for Communications 101 event in London, UK in early March. Further events are planned in Manchester, UK and Geneva, Switzerland later.

Thank you to Geeks are Wired, a technology podcast, for becoming our latest personal supporter. Geeks are Excellent. Be like them

• Here's how to grow your podcast with Facebook ads, from ThePodcastHost.
• It's not all about downloads. Podcast Movement lists three ways your organisation can measure podcast growth

There was a podcast category on Jeopardy!, a popular US television quiz show, on Friday night (show #8130). Here are the questions, and (spoiler!) the answers:

• $200: Complete the title of a podcast devoted to a Sarah Michelle Gellar series: Buffering... - A: Buffering the vampire slayer (Omny Studio)
• $600: In 2019 The Rewatchables celebrated the 30th anniversary of this movie about Charlie Sheen & his Cleveland Indians teammates - A: Major League, since you're wondering, in this episode from Apr 10. (The Ringer / ART19)
• $800: On his podcast Under the Skin, this British comedian tackles serious topics like personal growth - A: Russell Brand (Luminary)
• $1000: Song Exploder breaks down a classic tune, as when this Fleetwood Mac singer/guitarist discussed "Go Your Own Way" - A: This episode was from Dec 5, 2018, and had as guest Lindsey Buckingham. (PRX)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Acast, Podcorn, Entale, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Podcast Press, Spotify for Podcasters, Luminary, Knit, Libsyn, Evergreen Podcasts, Flick, LaunchPod Media, ART19, Megaphone, Simplecast, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, We Edit Podcasts, Call for Content, Himalaya, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, Muddy Knees Media, Podcast Design Studio, Podcast Guests, iHeartRadio, radio.com, The Roost, Poductivity, myTuner, audioBoom, Headliner, Rebel Base Media, Heartcast Media50, PODSquad, TeePublic, Whooshkaa, Synth, Podcast Taxi, Pacific Content, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Bababam, Lemonada Media, Podcast Websites, The Venn, RockWater Industries, Captivate, WaitWhat, podcast.co, Dante 32, Podcast Success Academy, Podcast Ad Report, NPR, nlogic, Content10x, Media Masters, Know or Not? Podcast Network, EverythingWithPodcasting, Podiant, StatsRadio, Creative Zombie Studios, echowave.io, Chartable, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Alternate Thursdays, Oxford Road, StreamGuys, DAX, Auxbus, Podcast Partnership, Benztown, Auscast Network, Ad Results Media, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Alitu, She Podcasts, School of Podcasting, Midroll, adswizz, Margarita Noriega, The Podcast Exchange, Podbean, Horse Radio Network, Resonate Recordings, Cleanfeed, Jim Harold Media LLC, Revolver Podcasts, Cadence13, Lower Street, The Talent Squad, TopPodcast.com, autopo.st, Wondery, Messy, BG AD Group, Sonix, Stakhanov, Podigy, Adopter Media, Pippa, Podcast Movement, Blubrry, Veritone One, Podknife, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Richard Dally, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Love Sport Radio, Audience Insights Inc, Triton Digital, Edison Research, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/darknet-diaries-stats-2019 for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Above: PodcastOne Australia is currently advertising their podcasts across the non-burning bits of the country, including this billboard photographed at Gepps Cross SA. (HT: our personal supporter Radionotes)
• Jack Rhysider has shared the statistics for his podcast Darknet Diaries in 2019. He highlights the main reasons why the podcast has significantly increased in downloads; the apps that downloaded his podcast, and Patreon revenue.
  • Here's how ours did this year - as we say, our podcast's good, but our newsletter's better.
• Procast, a German podcast app, now supports the donation button, joining apps like Overcast. (They've chosen an excellent example). We've updated our page on how to add a 'donate' button.

Exclusive: Man Apologizes to Monkey — The Hardest Word is unique. Each five minute episode showcases a real person apologizing. Variously heartbreaking, gobsmacking, funny, relatable, weird. And yes, we have a man apologizing to a monkey.

Register by MIDNIGHT to save on Podcast Movement! — The year is young, but it's not too early to register for Evolutions or PM20! Start the year right at Podcast Movement Evolutions this February in Los Angeles. Prices go up tonight!

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

• The new Chinese government podcast we linked to yesterday? Yang Yi from JustPod looked into it: it's on Ximlaya, and is called 物种100·贵州智慧 - Species 100: Guizhou Wisdom. However: it's an audiobook, and not a podcast. "When Xinhua News Agency translated the original release into English, it just borrowed the word 'podcast', which may be easier to understand in the Western world. But it caused huge misunderstandings."
• The Global Awards, run by UK media company Global, are to return with a new category for best podcast. Fifteen podcasts are selected for public vote, not all made by the company.
• A reminder of the power of word of mouth: someone on Reddit has just discovered podcasts. "I've seen that little Podcasts icon on my phone for years and never once was tempted to click it before. I just clicked it because someone told me I could listen to the Dirty John podcast there. ... I can hardly believe it's free. The content of the podcasts seems to be all quality stuff and there are hardly any commercials." (HT: Paul Bae)
• Telegram, a chat service, appears to have enhanced its support for playing "podcasts" - at least, when playing audio files over 20 minute duration sent via the app.
• PRX look forward to a decade of podcast possibilities. In the article, a photograph of their boardroom table, which is possibly the coolest boardroom table you'll see.
• The Boston Globe opines: In the future, everyone will have their own podcast for 15 minutes

• Good news: Google Podcasts on the web appears to have changed its error message for podcasts that don't exist: reverting to a standard Google error (though unfortunately with an HTTP 200 OK header). Searching the 300KB (!) of HTML returned for <title>Error 404 seems to have the required effect. We've added our check back to our podcast pages, and our podcast availability overview.

Privacy: Our podcast player within our podcast pages was grabbing jQuery from a Cloudflare-hosted CDN, which was attempting (but failing) to set a cookie. This was not detailed in our privacy policy. We're now hosting jQuery ourselves. Sorry.

• Spreaker Prime: Everyone knows that communication is the key to success. But what does that actually mean? On the Talk to Amber Podcast, communication expert and certified life coach, Amber L. Wright, breaks down how to communicate with confidence and clarity in everyday situations. She’s using Spreaker Prime to increase exposure and maximize monetization.
• Rocketship is back for a new season. It's a business podcast that has brought stories and advice to the startup community for the last 6 years: this season is all about product failure, like Google+, Webvan, and... Audible. (Rocketship / The Podglomerate / Megaphone)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Acast, Podcorn, Evergreen Podcasts, Himalaya, Megaphone, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Libsyn, Flick, Call for Content, Knit, LaunchPod Media, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Spotify for Podcasters, Entale, Podcast Press, Luminary, ART19, We Edit Podcasts, Simplecast, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, TeePublic, Rebel Base Media, Podcast Design Studio, Pacific Content, Dante 32, podcast.co, Whooshkaa, PODSquad, Bababam, Podcast Taxi, The Venn, Podcast Guests, Podcast Websites, radio.com, Poductivity, audioBoom, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Muddy Knees Media, Headliner, iHeartRadio, WaitWhat, Synth, NPR, Podcast Ad Report, Lemonada Media, Podcast Success Academy, Heartcast Media50, Captivate, RockWater Industries, myTuner, The Roost, Chartable, Media Masters, Auxbus, DAX, Auscast Network, Alitu, Benztown, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Creative Zombie Studios, nlogic, Know or Not? Podcast Network, EverythingWithPodcasting, Podcast Partnership, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Alternate Thursdays, Podiant, Content10x, StreamGuys, echowave.io, StatsRadio, Oxford Road, Ad Results Media, She Podcasts, Veritone One, Midroll, TopPodcast.com, School of Podcasting, Revolver Podcasts, Cleanfeed, Horse Radio Network, autopo.st, Podcast Movement, Podigy, Stakhanov, Margarita Noriega, The Talent Squad, Podbean, Lower Street, Resonate Recordings, Sonix, Adopter Media, The Podcast Exchange, adswizz, Cadence13, BG AD Group, Pippa, Blubrry, Jim Harold Media LLC, Podknife, Wondery, Messy, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Triton Digital, Audience Insights Inc, Edison Research, Love Sport Radio, Richard Dally, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/guizhou-province for all the links, and to subscribe.

• The Chinese press agency Xinhua report that the government in the Guizhou Province, in the south-west of the country, has launched a podcast "to raise people's awareness of the protection of endangered species." Its name isn't given, nor how to download it.
• Podcast Pontifications, normally Evo Terra's podcast, has had guest hosts for the last while. On December 31st, Skye Pillsbury talked about perfecting your podcast PR pitch, and today's episode features James Cridland, Podnews's editor, talking about smart speakers.
• French newspaper Libération is launching three podcasts this month: two of which will only be available to subscribers. (via PodFrance)

Build a membership program that listeners love — You want to build a membership program, but don't know what to offer? We've got your back. Check out this guide from Glow on creating memberships that your listeners will love and pay for.

Exclusive: Man Apologizes to Monkey — The Hardest Word is unique. Each five minute episode showcases a real person apologizing. Variously heartbreaking, gobsmacking, funny, relatable, weird. And yes, we have a man apologizing to a monkey.

Podcast Movement 2020 - NEW YEAR'S SALE — The year is young, but it's not too early to register for Evolutions or PM20! Start the year right at Podcast Movement Evolutions this February in Los Angeles. Prices go up Friday!

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

Free, Lifetime Subscription To Podcast Magazine — Coming in January, Podcast Magazine is the preeminent podcast publication focused on taking readers 'beyond the microphone' and into the lives of today's leading podcasters. Subscribe Now For FREE!

• French podcast host PodMust gives its podcast predictions for 2021. Among their predictions: free hosting for everyone.

• Spreaker Prime: The MovieFilm Podcast is hosted by film critic Zaki Hasan and television writer Brian Hall, and in their show they engage in hilarious and insightful conversations on all the latest out of Hollywood, including news, reviews, and interviews with some of the biggest names in movies! They’re using Spreaker Prime to earn money and cut their hosting costs.
• Given the new CCPA regulations, you might enjoy Terms & Conditions Apply, which discusses many subjects relevant to online data collection and privacy. (Anchor)
• The Bugle Presents... The Last Post is a new daily satirical news fantasy podcast hosted by Alice Fraser (off of The Bugle). It launched yesterday. (Somethin'Else)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, Call for Content, LaunchPod Media, Evergreen Podcasts, We Edit Podcasts, Simplecast, Megaphone, Podcast Press, Entale, ART19, Himalaya, Knit, Libsyn, Spotify for Podcasters, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Luminary, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Flick, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, Podcast Success Academy, audioBoom, Podcast Websites, Podcast Design Studio, Dante 32, Muddy Knees Media, Captivate, NPR, Pacific Content, iHeartRadio, Lemonada Media, RockWater Industries, Podcast Ad Report, Synth, podcast.co, TeePublic, Whooshkaa, Bababam, myTuner, Glisten Media Podcast Production, The Roost, Podcast Guests, WaitWhat, The Venn, Heartcast Media50, PODSquad, Rebel Base Media, Podcast Taxi, Headliner, Poductivity, radio.com, Chartable, Know or Not? Podcast Network, EverythingWithPodcasting, DAX, Alitu, echowave.io, Media Masters, Oxford Road, Alternate Thursdays, Benztown, Creative Zombie Studios, StreamGuys, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Podcast Partnership, Podiant, nlogic, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Auxbus, Ad Results Media, Content10x, StatsRadio, Auscast Network, She Podcasts, Jim Harold Media LLC, autopo.st, Resonate Recordings, Podcast Movement, The Podcast Exchange, Stakhanov, Podknife, School of Podcasting, Adopter Media, Podigy, adswizz, Horse Radio Network, Margarita Noriega, Cadence13, Veritone One, Cleanfeed, TopPodcast.com, Pippa, Midroll, Podbean, The Talent Squad, Sonix, BG AD Group, Revolver Podcasts, Wondery, Messy, Lower Street, Blubrry, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Love Sport Radio, Edison Research, Audience Insights Inc, Richard Dally, Triton Digital, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/ccpa-podcasters for all the links, and to subscribe.

Happy New Year!

• New privacy laws come into effect in California today, dubbed the CCPA. Chartable have published a guide to how they affect podcasters. (They're also sponsoring Podnews this month, too: thanks!)
• Libsyn have published their review of 2019. They claim 5.1bn downloads in the first nine months of the year, and highlight the welcome hiring of Rob Greenlee, who joined Libsyn earlier in 2019 as VP of Content and Partnerships.
• A British radio professional has listened to iHeartRadio's Podcast Channel, and shared his thoughts, describing it as "poorly executed" and "without any sense of love, careful crafting or curation."

Podcast Movement 2020 - NEW YEAR'S SALE — The year is young, but it's not too early to register for Evolutions or PM20! Start the year right at Podcast Movement Evolutions this February in Los Angeles. Prices go up Friday!

Join Supercast Beta today — Make your podcast a product, not a billboard. Supercast gives podcasters everything they need to sell member-exclusive podcast content to their listeners and build predictable, recurring revenue.

• Google's John Mueller, their Webmaster Trends Analyst, answered a question about how to get search engine optimisation right for a podcast website. Users of Reddit also added their own thoughts.
• What's your New Year's Resolution? The Podcast Host posts some resolutions for podcasters.
• WeEditPodcasts have published their look back at big podcast developments in the last decade. No mention of Podnews's launch in May 2017, though... ;)

• Spreaker Prime: Hollywood Hoops is a show that discusses all things basketball, from the Lakers and the Clippers in the NBA to UCLA and USC in the NCAA. Hosts Eric Pincus and Josh Martin take an in-depth look at basketball around the city of Los Angeles. They’re using Spreaker Prime to make hosting and advertising easier.
• Australian comedians Wil Anderson and Charlie Clausen's TOFOP has a bonus episode raising money for the Red Cross, helping those affected by the Australian Bushfires. Go here to donate.
• Down released its first episode today. It's a 24-part science-fiction podcast, about an expedition into a newly-discovered Antarctic trench, dubbed The Bottomless Pit. (Definitely Human / Acast)
• The 12:37 is a science-fiction podcast, returning in early 2020. "After she accidentally ends up on a time-travelling train, scientist Nora must find a way to return home." (Pinecast)
• Ghostpuncher Corps is a tabletop roleplaying podcast in which Dungeon Mistress Lilith takes three adventurers through the comic world of Ghostpuncher. It also comes with a horror comedy webcomic. (Libsyn)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Acast, Podcorn, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, We Edit Podcasts, Flick, ART19, Simplecast, Knit, Entale, Evergreen Podcasts, Spotify for Podcasters, Luminary, Podcast Press, Libsyn, Megaphone, Call for Content, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Himalaya, LaunchPod Media, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: 17 Questions, The Big Shot, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, Poductivity, PODSquad, Whooshkaa, Dante 32, Pacific Content, Bababam, Captivate, NPR, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Podcast Guests, WaitWhat, Podcast Design Studio, audioBoom, Podcast Ad Report, iHeartRadio, Rebel Base Media, Headliner, Synth, TeePublic, myTuner, Lemonada Media, Heartcast Media50, Muddy Knees Media, podcast.co, Podcast Success Academy, radio.com, The Venn, RockWater Industries, Podcast Taxi, Podcast Websites, The Roost, StreamGuys, Podcast Partnership, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Benztown, Podiant, Ad Results Media, Chartable, Alitu, Sonic Influencer Marketing, EverythingWithPodcasting, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Content10x, Oxford Road, echowave.io, DAX, Media Masters, Alternate Thursdays, nlogic, StatsRadio, Auscast Network, Auxbus, Creative Zombie Studios, She Podcasts, TopPodcast.com, Jim Harold Media LLC, Revolver Podcasts, Pippa, Resonate Recordings, Blubrry, Lower Street, Adopter Media, Wondery, Podbean, School of Podcasting, Podigy, The Talent Squad, Stakhanov, Sonix, autopo.st, Messy, Veritone One, Podcast Movement, BG AD Group, Cleanfeed, The Podcast Exchange, Horse Radio Network, Cadence13, Podknife, Margarita Noriega, Midroll, adswizz, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Richard Dally, Love Sport Radio, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Edison Research, Audience Insights Inc, Triton Digital, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/podcast-ratings-website for all the links, and to subscribe.

• A new website, RateThisPodcast, has launched: which claims it's a simple, device-aware, link to read on your podcast that explains how to rate it. Here's ratethispodcast·com/podnews as an example: it's free to claim your link.
• Castro, "the iPhone podcast player for podcast fanatics", now allows podcasters to pay to promote their podcasts within the app. A week's promotion with Castro in all categories costs US$249. A similar method exists with Overcast: from August, here's how that works.
• Here's how to get your podcast into Majelan, a subscription podcast app from France (which also contains free podcasts). Our request to be added was responded to with a "hey, we read Podnews every day!" which was nice. We've updated our list of podcast directories.

Happy (early) New Year from Podcast Movement! — Here's hoping the new year is fruitful for you and your podcast! We'd love to invite you to start it right at Podcast Movement Evolutions this February in Los Angeles. Prices go up January 3!

NEW: Improve the sound of your speaking voice. — Get professional voice coaching designed specifically for podcasters, speakers & CEOs. Singers can train a singing voice, you can train a speaking voice. Learn how to add focus & depth to your voice.

• Podcast Generator, an open-source CMS for podcasters first available in 200 6, has released v3.0 on Github, which is a total rewrite of the earlier product.
• If you're thinking of building your own podcast app, we hear that there's a fully-featured, well-rated iOS podcast app that's available for purchase or re-purposing: it's from a company that's about to pivot their consumer offer. Hit reply and we'll confidentially pass the message on.
• Mark Asquith from Rebel Base Media, which runs growth-oriented podcast host Captivate, has been interviewed by SquadCast. Disclosures

• Spreaker Prime: Which Murderer is a show that talks about the methods, motives and background of murderers and their victims, covering two crimes per episode and debating from the victim's perspective which murderer the hosts would pick to kill them if they HAD to choose. They’re using Spreaker Prime to earn money and cut their hosting costs.
• The New York Times profiles Dax Shepherd's Armchair Expert podcast.

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Acast, Podcorn, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, We Edit Podcasts, Knit, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Simplecast, Flick, Himalaya, Megaphone, Libsyn, LaunchPod Media, Entale, Luminary, Podcast Press, Call for Content, Spotify for Podcasters, Evergreen Podcasts, ART19, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, Headliner, Bababam, Podcast Guests, Podcast Websites, RockWater Industries, TeePublic, Rebel Base Media, PODSquad, myTuner, Poductivity, iHeartRadio, Podcast Success Academy, podcast.co, Podcast Ad Report, Heartcast Media50, audioBoom, Lemonada Media, NPR, Podcast Design Studio, The Roost, WaitWhat, Pacific Content, Captivate, Muddy Knees Media, Whooshkaa, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Synth, Dante 32, The Venn, Podcast Taxi, radio.com, Alitu, echowave.io, Auxbus, Oxford Road, StatsRadio, Chartable, Auscast Network, nlogic, Ad Results Media, Media Masters, Content10x, StreamGuys, Podcast Partnership, EverythingWithPodcasting, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Creative Zombie Studios, Alternate Thursdays, Podiant, Benztown, DAX, Know or Not? Podcast Network, She Podcasts, Resonate Recordings, Veritone One, Adopter Media, BG AD Group, Podcast Movement, Blubrry, Podknife, School of Podcasting, Cadence13, Margarita Noriega, Cleanfeed, Messy, Wondery, Midroll, The Talent Squad, Podigy, Pippa, autopo.st, Stakhanov, Sonix, The Podcast Exchange, adswizz, Jim Harold Media LLC, Lower Street, Revolver Podcasts, TopPodcast.com, Horse Radio Network, Podbean, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Audience Insights Inc, Love Sport Radio, Richard Dally, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Triton Digital, Edison Research, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/ihm-podcast-channel-3 for all the links, and to subscribe.

• iHeartRadio have launched a third all-podcast radio station. Listeners in Erie PA will find the iHeartRadio Podcast Channel on WLTM, 95.9 FM. It joins Allentown-Bethlehem PA's WSAN 1470 AM, and Albuquerque NM, KABQ 1350 AM. It's the first podcast station to make it to FM in the US, reports iHeartRadio-owned Inside Radio.
• Gaana, an Indian music streaming service, is planning a portfolio of 3,000 podcasts by March 2020. They hope for 10 crore (100,000,000) monthly listens. Meanwhile, Scroll reports on a surge in the popularity of podcasts in India. A 2011 census showed that 10% of people in India - 125m - speak English, making it the second-largest English-speaking country in the world.
• In France, Majelan, a subscription podcast platform, has raised another €6m (US$6.7m) in funding.

Build a membership program that listeners love — You want to build a membership program, but don't know what to offer? We've got your back. Check out this guide from Glow on creating memberships that your listeners will love and pay for.

Happy (early) New Year from Podcast Movement! — Here's hoping the new year is fruitful for you and your podcast! We'd love to invite you to start it right at Podcast Movement Evolutions this February in Los Angeles. Prices go up January 3!

Podcast Editing Made Easy! Podnews Extended Trial — Save time editing your podcast with Hindenburg Journalist PRO. Automatic sound leveling. Simple powerful turn dial noise reduction. Preset voice profiles for consistent sound. 1-click cloud publishing.

• Richard Davies writes how indie podcasters can survive the tsunami of bigness in 2020. There are, he says, "fresh opportunities for new, young, diverse voices."
• An interesting piece in Medium from UX designer Jordan Buckhalt, on designing a podcast app. (We can't see whether the final app was launched, though.)
• "Podcast hobbyists will experience 2020 as the year of reckoning. While some will be happy to produce an episode whenever they can find the time, others will leave full-time jobs and risk it all in podcasting," says Juleyka Lantigua-Williams in Niemen Lab.
  • Meanwhile, Karthik Vijayakumar makes his podcast industry predictions for 2020.
• An online event, Jan 24-26: The Mass Media Podcast Summit

• Spreaker Prime: Florida Men is the official podcast of the Florida Man. Each week the hosts share stories from the shady side of the Sunshine State, starring America's most prolific criminal. Part true crime, part comedy, all weird. This show is about the kind of stuff that only happens in the state where everybody is crazy from the heat. They’re using Spreaker Prime to host for free and make more money.
• My mate bought a toaster looks through someone's Amazon purchase history to find out more about them. The co-hosts, Tom Price and Samantha Baines, are currently discovering more about their own buying habits. (Great Big Owl / Acast)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, Spotify for Podcasters, ART19, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Entale, Podcast Press, Flick, Himalaya, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Megaphone, Knit, Call for Content, LaunchPod Media, We Edit Podcasts, Evergreen Podcasts, Simplecast, Libsyn, Luminary, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, Heartcast Media50, Synth, The Venn, Poductivity, Bababam, iHeartRadio, WaitWhat, podcast.co, Podcast Ad Report, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Podcast Success Academy, audioBoom, Podcast Guests, Podcast Taxi, myTuner, Podcast Websites, Dante 32, TeePublic, Pacific Content, RockWater Industries, The Roost, Captivate, radio.com, PODSquad, Muddy Knees Media, Rebel Base Media, Whooshkaa, NPR, Headliner, Lemonada Media, Podcast Design Studio, Alitu, Media Masters, Chartable, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Oxford Road, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, StreamGuys, Auscast Network, Auxbus, Content10x, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Alternate Thursdays, Creative Zombie Studios, DAX, Ad Results Media, EverythingWithPodcasting, Benztown, Podcast Partnership, nlogic, echowave.io, StatsRadio, Podiant, She Podcasts, School of Podcasting, Midroll, Podcast Movement, The Podcast Exchange, Lower Street, Wondery, Resonate Recordings, Podigy, Horse Radio Network, Cleanfeed, Cadence13, Jim Harold Media LLC, Podknife, Blubrry, Margarita Noriega, adswizz, Podbean, The Talent Squad, TopPodcast.com, Veritone One, Adopter Media, BG AD Group, Sonix, autopo.st, Stakhanov, Pippa, Messy, Revolver Podcasts, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Audience Insights Inc, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Love Sport Radio, Triton Digital, Edison Research, Richard Dally, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/uae-podcasting for all the links, and to subscribe.

• UAE podcast network AMAEYA Media has published a state of the industry report for 2019, based on a survey of UAE listeners. Listeners in the region prefer entertainment; yet few local publishers are producing entertainment or comedy podcasts, the report says.
• Intrado have added podcast monitoring to their Notified service, which lets brand owners and PR companies hear mentions of their company on podcasts.
• The CBC has launched its first podcast in the Cree language, spoken in parts of Canada's North. It isn't, yet, in any podcast app.

Let your listeners choose to go ad-free — Ads help you make money, but not all your listeners want to hear them. Let your biggest fans pay you to go ad-free, and double your show's revenue along the way. Get started in 10 minutes with Glow.fm

Happy (early) New Year from Podcast Movement! — Here's hoping the new year is fruitful for you and your podcast! We'd love to invite you to start it right at Podcast Movement Evolutions this February in Los Angeles. Prices go up January 3!

• Looking for good examples of branded podcasts? ThePodcastHost have posted a set of successful ones, including from Trader Joes, McDonald's, and John Deere.
• Podcasts have transformed (UK) radio, according to The Spectator's Kate Chisholm. Meanwhile, in Australia, podcasts appear to be at the heart of the radio industry's future revenue, according to the CEOs.
• The future of podcasts? Apparently it's interactive choose-your-own-adventure-style podcasts, according to Amelia Ward, Head of Digital at PHD Sydney.
• Podcast Review look at what they consider to be five outstanding podcasts from Africa.

Feedback: You can always just hit reply with your thoughts on the day's news. Harris, host of the Sleep Whispers podcast, writes:

I 100% agree with Daniel J Lewis and others that ratings/reviews are a non-variable (or insignificant variable) in the Apple Podcast ranking algorithm (Dec 25). The key reason is that it is too easily gamed.
But I think many journalists who write podcast listicle articles base their selections on the ratings/reviews - which gives a boost to the podcasts mentioned in those articles. I can tell by how many podcast articles mention my podcast that they probably have never listened to it: it's usually a summary of my description.
Ratings/reviews are not totally useless: they can provide indirect boosts to growing your audience.

• Spreaker Prime: All Crime No Cattle details the most fascinating true crimes from the Lone Star State. From small to Texas-sized crimes, y’all won’t be able to get enough of these stories. They’re using Spreaker Prime to host for free and make more money.
• The Sentenced to Life podcast tackles trauma, suicide and PTSD head on. "With honesty, humor and hope, it is our goal to shed light on these important topics and shatter the stigma around these very real and ever increasing issues," they say, and are asking for donations. (Blubrry)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, Flick, Simplecast, Call for Content, Spotify for Podcasters, Megaphone, Libsyn, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Himalaya, ART19, Podcast Press, LaunchPod Media, Entale, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Luminary, Knit, We Edit Podcasts, Evergreen Podcasts, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: 17 Questions, The Big Shot, Quip, Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, Poductivity, Pacific Content, Podcast Success Academy, Bababam, Glisten Media Podcast Production, RockWater Industries, myTuner, Dante 32, Muddy Knees Media, Synth, TeePublic, NPR, PODSquad, Whooshkaa, Podcast Websites, audioBoom, The Venn, iHeartRadio, podcast.co, The Roost, WaitWhat, Podcast Taxi, Captivate, Headliner, Podcast Ad Report, Podcast Design Studio, Heartcast Media50, Podcast Guests, Rebel Base Media, Lemonada Media, radio.com, Alitu, StatsRadio, Trebble, nlogic, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Podiant, echowave.io, Media Masters, Ad Results Media, Know or Not? Podcast Network, EverythingWithPodcasting, Oxford Road, Auscast Network, StreamGuys, Chartable, Creative Zombie Studios, Content10x, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Auxbus, Benztown, Alternate Thursdays, DAX, Podcast Partnership, She Podcasts, School of Podcasting, Blubrry, Revolver Podcasts, Podigy, Midroll, Jim Harold Media LLC, Margarita Noriega, Pippa, adswizz, TopPodcast.com, Podbean, BG AD Group, Resonate Recordings, Cleanfeed, Stakhanov, Sonix, Messy, Podcast Movement, The Podcast Exchange, Wondery, Adopter Media, autopo.st, Cadence13, Veritone One, Podknife, Horse Radio Network, The Talent Squad, Lower Street, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Richard Dally, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Audience Insights Inc, Triton Digital, Edison Research, Love Sport Radio, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/apple-podcasts-growth for all the links, and to subscribe.

• In Libsyn's The Feed, Rob Walch shared growth stats for Libsyn-hosted podcasts in Jan-Oct 2019. Listening on Apple Podcasts increased by 13.1%; but since Apple Podcasts accounts for 58% of all podcast listens, that growth accounts for 44.5% of total podcast growth in 2019. Listening to podcasts on Spotify doubled in 2019, accounting for 39.5% of total podcast growth. We reported on Libsyn's overall podcast app market share numbers in late November; Walch also clarified that almost all Libsyn shows are now on Spotify.
• Stitcher has a new, easier, podcast submission process, and useful statistics showing downloads and listening time. We've updated our list of where to add your podcast.
• The BBC says that there was a record amount of podcast listening on BBC Sounds, the Corporation's audio app, in 2019. The Global News Podcast was downloaded or played more than 145m times in the UK and around the world this year.

Happy (early) New Year from Podcast Movement! — Here's hoping the new year is fruitful for you and your podcast! We'd love to invite you to start it right at Podcast Movement Evolutions this February in Los Angeles. Prices go up January 3!

Podcast Editing Made Easy! Podnews Extended Trial — Save time editing your podcast with Hindenburg Journalist PRO. Automatic sound leveling. Simple powerful turn dial noise reduction. Preset voice profiles for consistent sound. 1-click cloud publishing.

• A Dutch true-crime podcast from the Netherlands Police has resulted in fifteen new leads.
• Podchaser are keen for more integrations with other services, and are asking for votes for which tools to integrate with next. (We're on the list - and are up for any integration!)
• Eric Nuzum says, in a prediction piece, that "creating knockoffs is the wrong approach, and there’s a ton of it happening now. It’s riding the momentum of the podcast boom without actually contributing much to it."

Ratings and reviews don't affect rankings in Apple Podcasts, we reported yesterday. Here are some of the responses we had:

Nobody has ever claimed that the total number of reviews has an impact on the charts. Rather, just like everything else on Apple Podcasts (subscribes, plays, views), the theory (strongly encouraged by vague comments from Apple employees) goes that it’s the rate of reviews, in a short / given time frame. Part of why new shows do better in the charts, relatively speaking (unless you’re a blockbuster show). That having been said, I would love to see a study that looks at that (rate of reviews, as opposed to total amount) to either debunk or confirm it.

Podchaser adds:

This is not true for Podchaser. Ask for reviews on Podchaser to move up our charts (they'll also show up in The Feed for everyone to see and discover).

• Spreaker Prime: **Switch, Pivot and Quit is a podcast that lets you sit in with your girlfriends and chat all things career changes and challenges. These influential women often find themselves iTunes’ curated list of "Inspiring Women." They’re using Spreaker Prime to earn money and cut their hosting costs.
• My Favorite Murder gets a review by Podcast Review. "I’m not the only person who’s found something deeply moving, and even comforting, in My Favorite Murder’s irreverent approach to crime," says Claudia McCarron. (Exactly Right / ART19)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, Himalaya, Megaphone, Knit, Entale, Luminary, Spotify for Podcasters, Libsyn, Simplecast, LaunchPod Media, Evergreen Podcasts, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Flick, Call for Content, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, We Edit Podcasts, ART19, Podcast Press, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, Pacific Content, radio.com, PODSquad, iHeartRadio, Podcast Success Academy, WaitWhat, Lemonada Media, Muddy Knees Media, Captivate, podcast.co, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Podcast Websites, The Roost, Podcast Ad Report, TeePublic, Podcast Taxi, Podcast Design Studio, Whooshkaa, Bababam, Heartcast Media50, RockWater Industries, Poductivity, Dante 32, audioBoom, NPR, myTuner, The Venn, Synth, Rebel Base Media, Headliner, Podcast Guests, Benztown, Know or Not? Podcast Network, StreamGuys, Alitu, Auscast Network, Podcast Partnership, echowave.io, nlogic, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Media Masters, Ad Results Media, Podiant, EverythingWithPodcasting, Content10x, Oxford Road, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, Auxbus, StatsRadio, Creative Zombie Studios, DAX, Chartable, Trebble, Alternate Thursdays, She Podcasts, Podbean, Veritone One, Lower Street, Messy, School of Podcasting, The Podcast Exchange, Sonix, adswizz, autopo.st, The Talent Squad, TopPodcast.com, Cleanfeed, Wondery, Horse Radio Network, Resonate Recordings, Jim Harold Media LLC, Podigy, Stakhanov, Podcast Movement, Pippa, Blubrry, Margarita Noriega, Podknife, Revolver Podcasts, Midroll, Adopter Media, BG AD Group, Cadence13, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Richard Dally, Edison Research, Audience Insights Inc, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Triton Digital, Love Sport Radio, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/ratings-reviews for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Ratings and reviews do not affect ranking in Apple Podcasts. That's the analysis of Daniel J Lewis from My Podcast Reviews, who posts the above graphic, saying:

I took this screenshot of the top 12 shows in all of Apple Podcasts yesterday, and I added text showing the number of ratings and reviews for each show. Note that the current highest-ranking show has the second least number of ratings and reviews (1.5K), beating a show with 134K ratings and reviews. And note that the #9 result has only 209 ratings and reviews. That's not 209,000; it's only 209. And it's ranking better than a show with 60K ratings and reviews. So if ratings and reviews affected ranking, then Crime Junkie would be beating The Joe Rogan Experience, most of these podcasts would be in this top-12 list, and Solve would be near the bottom of all podcasts. I've collaborated with others who have helped podcasts climb the charts with legitimate audience growth and almost no ratings and reviews. And I've seen the data from others who get lots of ratings and reviews, but don't climb the charts.

• Podcast assembly company Auxbus is for sale, its founder and CEO Dan Radin has announced. He says: "We’ve focused too heavily on building a great product while not focusing enough on building a great business."
• Podcast Movement have announced more speakers for Podcast Movement Evolutions in February. Our Editor, James Cridland, is also speaking.
• Powerpress 8.1 has been released, with a new "Getting Started" feature to help new users.

Happy (early) New Year from Podcast Movement! — Here's hoping the new year is fruitful for you and your podcast! We'd love to invite you to start it right at Podcast Movement Evolutions this February in Los Angeles. Prices go up January 3!

For Sale: Auxbus Podcast Creation SaaS Company — Patent-pending platform guides anyone—even with zero audio experience—through planning, recording, auto-finishing, and instantly distributing great podcasts, fast. *****4.95 out of 5-star user rating!

• The CatholicTV Network, from Boston MA, USA, is to launch a new podcast division, called Grexley.
• Google Podcasts is working on a number of new features, which 9to5google has worked out how to enable. Coming "soon", kind of, maybe, is a "History" tab, so you know what you've been listening to; a play queue (so you can choose what's coming up next); and auto-downloads (first spotted in January).
• Idea: Want to give your favourite podcaster a nice present? Pop along and give them a positive, five-star review - either on Apple Podcasts or on Podchaser.

Christmas is a time for joy and happiness, they say, but if it's not for you, there are plenty of people who can help - a problem shared is often a problem helped. Here's a list of helpful numbers and online chat services.

• Spreaker Prime: The Karen & Ellen Letters highlights a found correspondence between two teenage girls and their landlord, over a three year period, from the 1980s. This podcast is the reading of those letters and a re-telling of the host's journey to validate their authenticity. They’re using Spreaker Prime to earn money and cut their hosting costs.
• Malaysia Tatler carries an article from Yi Jun Loh, the host of Breaking Bread, a food podcast from Malaysian radio station BFM. In What I've Learnt From Running A Food Podcast For BFM, he says how it's changed his appreciation for Malaysian food.

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, LaunchPod Media, Flick, Megaphone, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Evergreen Podcasts, Podcast Press, Spotify for Podcasters, Knit, Libsyn, Luminary, Himalaya, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Simplecast, Call for Content, Entale, We Edit Podcasts, ART19, Futuri Media, POST by Futuri

Silver supporters: The Big Shot, 17 Questions, Quip, Message Heard, Xperi, All In Media, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, Podcast Design Studio, Synth, The Roost, Lemonada Media, TeePublic, WaitWhat, Whooshkaa, RockWater Industries, Bababam, Headliner, The Venn, Podcast Websites, Podcast Success Academy, myTuner, Captivate, Podcast Taxi, radio.com, PODSquad, Podcast Guests, Dante 32, Muddy Knees Media, podcast.co, Podcast Ad Report, Poductivity, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Pacific Content, iHeartRadio, Rebel Base Media, NPR, audioBoom, Heartcast Media50, echowave.io, Ad Results Media, Oxford Road, Trebble, Know or Not? Podcast Network, DAX, Podiant, Media Masters, StreamGuys, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, StatsRadio, Sonic Influencer Marketing, EverythingWithPodcasting, Creative Zombie Studios, Benztown, Content10x, Podcast Partnership, Auxbus, Auscast Network, nlogic, Alitu, Alternate Thursdays, Chartable, She Podcasts, autopo.st, Messy, Adopter Media, Horse Radio Network, Jim Harold Media LLC, Veritone One, Cadence13, TopPodcast.com, Podknife, Revolver Podcasts, Stakhanov, Sonix, Blubrry, Resonate Recordings, Podcast Movement, Podigy, Pippa, Midroll, The Talent Squad, BG AD Group, The Podcast Exchange, Wondery, School of Podcasting, Lower Street, Podbean, adswizz, Margarita Noriega, Cleanfeed, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Love Sport Radio, Richard Dally, Triton Digital, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Audience Insights Inc, Edison Research, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/patreon-posts-not-being-read for all the links, and to subscribe.

• Are you posting things on Patreon to your supporters? Sean Howard says that only 0.76% of his supporters are reading any of the bonus content they're posting. Patreon have said the figures don't include mobile traffic - but don't appear to have clarified how much more traffic that would be.
• The British Podcast Awards and Wellcome have announced the eleven successful recipients of the Pulse Award, sharing £50,000 of funding for podcasts that drive conversations around public health.
• Stitcher looks back at their 2019, with a list of best-ofs and data about the service. There were significantly more searches for "true crime" than "comedy", according to the numbers.

Subscribe to Sweating The Small Stuff — Explore the science, stories, and misconceptions behind your favorite pop culture moments. If you ever thought deeply about supervillain corporate strategy, the physics of superheroes, or just crave a different perspective on your favorite subjects then this show is for you.

Let your listeners choose to go ad-free — Ads help you make money, but not all your listeners want to hear them. Let your biggest fans pay you to go ad-free, and double your show's revenue along the way. Get started in 10 minutes with Glow.fm

• Country Music RADIO, a streaming radio app, has just added a podcast player with 20 popular country music podcasts to their iOS app. The radio app has 275+ country music radio stations and has achieved over a million downloads.
• Engadget looks back at Spotify's podcast power play, with a full interview with Courtney Holt.
• Netflix released details of their subscriber revenue outside the US.
• An event in Lagos, Nigeria: three female podcasters are presenting Podcasting 101: Tips & Tricks of the Trade. It's on Jan 4, and costs ₦5,000 (US $13).
• And an event in London, UK: the Pitfalls of Podcasting. An evening of mistakes, so you don't have to. It's on Jan 14, and tickets are free.

Christmas is a time for joy and happiness, they say, but if it's not for you, there are plenty of people who can help - a problem shared is often a problem helped. Here's a list of helpful numbers and online chat services.

• Spreaker Prime: Our True Crime Podcast focuses on bizarre, lesser known crime cases from around the globe delivered with respect, a bit of humor and a smidge of song (everything listeners have come to love from hosts Jen and Cam). They’re using Spreaker Prime to host for free and make more money.
• The Communicate Influence Podcast has our Editor, James Cridland, talking about podcast trends for 2020. (Acast Open)
• Were you raised by wolves?, a podcast about etiquette and manners, has a Christmas special episode. Is it rude to regift? If you're feeling stressed about money, is it rude to give handmade gifts to your friends? Is it rude to not see all my friends and extended family when I go home for the holidays? They have the answer. (Simplecast)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Podcorn, Acast, ART19, Podcast Press, Evergreen Podcasts, Himalaya, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Call for Content, We Edit Podcasts, Flick, Simplecast, Entale, Knit, Libsyn, Megaphone, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, Luminary, Spotify for Podcasters, LaunchPod Media, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: 17 Questions, The Big Shot, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Bullhorn, Lantigua Williams and Co, Ausha, Somethin'Else, Podfront, Podcast Taxi, Podcast Websites, Lemonada Media, Rebel Base Media, Pacific Content, Whooshkaa, Podcast Design Studio, Podcast Success Academy, Glisten Media Podcast Production, podcast.co, Poductivity, Headliner, Captivate, Dante 32, PODSquad, iHeartRadio, Podcast Ad Report, audioBoom, Synth, WaitWhat, myTuner, Muddy Knees Media, The Venn, RockWater Industries, Bababam, radio.com, Podcast Guests, Heartcast Media50, The Roost, NPR, TeePublic, Ad Results Media, nlogic, Auscast Network, DAX, Creative Zombie Studios, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Alitu, Sonic Influencer Marketing, echowave.io, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, StreamGuys, Podiant, Chartable, Podcast Partnership, Content10x, StatsRadio, EverythingWithPodcasting, Benztown, Alternate Thursdays, Trebble, Auxbus, Oxford Road, Media Masters, She Podcasts, Podbean, Blubrry, autopo.st, BG AD Group, Podcast Movement, Cleanfeed, Resonate Recordings, Horse Radio Network, Margarita Noriega, Cadence13, TopPodcast.com, Stakhanov, adswizz, Revolver Podcasts, Sonix, Messy, Wondery, The Podcast Exchange, Midroll, The Talent Squad, Veritone One, Podigy, Jim Harold Media LLC, Pippa, Podknife, Adopter Media, Lower Street, School of Podcasting, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Audience Insights Inc, Love Sport Radio, Richard Dally, Edison Research, Triton Digital, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us

Visit https://podnews.net/update/daily-show-universe for all the links, and to subscribe.

• The Daily Show is launching a podcast miniseries, The Daily Show Podcast Universe
• Podfollow, a free URL that redirects your listeners to the right podcast app on their device (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, your website) has just had its 1,000,000th click thru. The service now offers free stats as well as automatic social images and has announced more features in the new year.
• Dan Misener has chatted with Dave Zohrob from Chartable about SmartPromos, a way to work out whether that appearance as a guest on someone else's podcast actually meant your own podcast got downloads. (Disclosure: Chartable are sponsoring Podnews in January)

THE PODCAST MOVEMENT HOLIDAY SALE ENDS TONIGHT — Christmas has come early! Santa Claus is here, bearing the gift of discounted prices to attend Podcast Movement 2020 and Podcast Movement Evolutions! Register by MIDNIGHT TONIGHT!

Free, Lifetime Subscription To Podcast Magazine — Coming in January, Podcast Magazine is the preeminent podcast publication focused on taking readers 'beyond the microphone' and into the lives of today's leading podcasters. Subscribe Now For FREE!

NEW: Improve the sound of your speaking voice. — Get professional voice coaching designed specifically for podcasters, speakers & CEOs. Singers can train a singing voice, you can train a speaking voice. Learn how to add focus & depth to your voice.

• A new podcast studio has opened at Zip Zap Media, in Savannah GA, USA.
• The Google Podcasts app is no longer available on Chromebooks, we've discovered. You can still use it on the web, though it lacks a front page or subscription management there.
• Podcasting unsilences the silenced, says WFAE's Joni Deutsch. "We can’t let ... commercialized, hyper-celebrity noise drown out the diverse voices, perspectives, and stories that can and should call podcasting home." (ht: Elsie Escobar)
• Podcast host Anchor has rolled out new-look profile pages. (Here's one).
• In the Netherlands, a survey: het Podcastnetwerk is benieuwd naar wat jullie de (minst) favoriete, nieuw ontdekte, of ondergewaardeerde podcasts van 2019 vinden. Vul hier hun mini-onderzoekje in!

• Spreaker Prime: Grants Rants Hollywood Talk is a podcast with a fresh take on a Hollywood. Each show features a guest co-host. Together, with host and personality, Grant Rutter, they share their opinions and approval/disapproval over the latest Hollywood dish. He’s using Spreaker Prime to host for free and make more money.
• Congratulations to Dave Jackson's School of Podcasting for reaching, we're told, 700 episodes. He started in 2005. (Libsyn)
• Spotted: the hosts of Shameless - the "pop culture podcast for smart women who love dumb stuff" - in an Instagram ad for Australian clothes retailer Cotton On. (ht: Radionotes) (Whooshkaa)

Our supporters (become one):

Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Voxnest, Awesound, Acast, Podcorn, Entale, We Edit Podcasts, Call for Content, Megaphone, Flick, Evergreen Podcasts, Simplecast, LaunchPod Media, Knit, Podcast Press, Himalaya, WarnerMedia Podcast Network, ART19, Libsyn, One of One Productions Podcast Studio, Luminary, Spotify for Podcasters, POST by Futuri, Futuri Media

Silver supporters: 17 Questions, The Big Shot, Quip, Message Heard, All In Media, Xperi, Fireside, Lantigua Williams and Co, Bullhorn, Ausha, Podfront, Somethin'Else, PODSquad, Captivate, Pacific Content, Glisten Media Podcast Production, Poductivity, Podcast Success Academy, Whooshkaa, audioBoom, Podcast Websites, Muddy Knees Media, RockWater Industries, WaitWhat, iHeartRadio, Lemonada Media, Heartcast Media50, Headliner, Podcast Guests, Bababam, Podcast Ad Report, podcast.co, The Roost, The Venn, Synth, Podcast Design Studio, myTuner, NPR, Dante 32, TeePublic, Podcast Taxi, Rebel Base Media, radio.com, DAX, echowave.io, Alternate Thursdays, Podiant, Creative Zombie Studios, StatsRadio, Ad Results Media, Trebble, Auxbus, EverythingWithPodcasting, Alitu, Know or Not? Podcast Network, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Benztown, Chartable, nlogic, Podcast Partnership, Rachel Corbett\s Podschool, StreamGuys, Media Masters, Content10x, Auscast Network, Oxford Road, She Podcasts, Podigy, Veritone One, autopo.st, Blubrry, Podcast Movement, Cadence13, Wondery, Adopter Media, Podknife, Jim Harold Media LLC, The Talent Squad, TopPodcast.com, Cleanfeed, Margarita Noriega, Stakhanov, Messy, School of Podcasting, Midroll, BG AD Group, Lower Street, Revolver Podcasts, Podbean, Pippa, Resonate Recordings, Horse Radio Network, adswizz, Sonix, The Podcast Exchange, Nobex Partners, Omny Studio, Edison Research, Richard Dally, 89.9 Light FM Melbourne, Love Sport Radio, Audience Insights Inc, Triton Digital, Podrover, Radio Public

Support us