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Sponsored by SoundStack. Your new revenue opportunity lives in existing podcast content. Rediscover, repurpose, and monetize more of the audio and video you already have with SoundStack AI. Learn more After we noted an episode of WTF being visualized for YouTube, another fan favourite podcast has been adapted for the platform - this time, a horror story from Tenderfoot TV's Radio Rental has made it to YouTube... in LEGO bricks. The release comes as a new season of Radio Rental kicks off today. And speaking of video, Apple Podcasts launched "The Greatest Stories Never Seen" - short original video clips that highlight four shows available in video on the platform. The shows promoted are: Acast's Toni and Ryan, Wondery's Baby, this is Keke Palmer, iHeart's Las Culturistas, and the indie House Guest. The videos are being promoted on the Apple Podcasts Instagram feed (90,500 followers). Spotify published its Q3/26 financial update. In a welcome turn of fortune, ad revenue was up +10% year-on-year, led by "strong growth in automated biddable sales channels" - and "podcasting growth was led by sponsorship gains within our Owned and Licensed portfolio". Ad revenue accounts for only 10.7% of total company revenue - and ads are half as profitable as premium subscribers. The number of premium subscribers grew +9% to 306mn. The newly-introduced skip-ahead button seems to be not mentioned to investors. > > > Read more of today’s podcast industry news stories on the Podnews website: and get our free daily newsletter. Classifieds - your job or ad here Podcast Listener Experience Audit — They found your podcast & pressed play. What do they hear & how do they react? You get actionable feedback from a listener’s perspective, paying attention to what attracts & distracts. Audienclelift.com Podcast Growth You Can Trust — Verified Growth™ from Audiencelift.com helps your podcast reach real listeners, and lets listeners choose their preferred listening app. Schedule a Demo. Experience Behind the Mic and Behind your Show. — Led by a host with 20-plus years in podcasting, BackBeat knows how to grow revenue without sacrificing audience trust. For podcasters, by podcasters. Join us. Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Mowpod, Beehiiv, The $100 MBA, Podbean, Cloud10, The Podglomerate, The Content Creator's Accountant, Libsyn, Magid, Audiohook, Cohost, Scicomm Media, PAVE Studios, RedCircle, audioBoom, Sounds Profitable, Simplecast, Podscribe, Jar Podcast Solutions, Awesound, We Edit Podcasts, Acast, Podpage websites Silver supporters: Audacia Audio, Gamut Podcast Network, Bumper, Sounds Debatable, True Native Media, Magellan AI, Nomono, Red Seat Ventures, Hypecast, Ausha, Truefans, PodAnalyst, Castbox, Podium , Podcast Movement, iono.fm, Blubrry, Frequency, The Podcast Haven, ARN's iHeartPodcast Network Aust, POW PR, Companion Arts, Compliance Podcast Network, Voxtopica, Podium, Tink Media, Jonekiri, SoundStack, Locked On Podcast Network, Health Podcast Library, Diversion Podcasts, Rephonic, Lemonada Media, Headliner, Transistor, Double Elvis Productions, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Rhapsody Voices, CreatorX, Jam Street Media, Podcast Partnership, Content10x, Cleanfeed, School of Podcasting, Lower Street, Adopter Media, Revolver Podcasts, Podigy, Signal Hill Insights Our supporters pay for Podnews, so everyone can read it. Join them today.

Sponsored by SoundStack. Your new revenue opportunity lives in existing podcast content. Rediscover, repurpose, and monetize more of the audio and video you already have with SoundStack AI. Learn more Exclusive: On Air Fest is celebrating ten years of the event by celebrating ten years of big moments that have happened at On Air Fest. The event began in the same year as Podnews, in 2017: The On Air 100 lists a hundred moments that have shaped the event and the industry - including Spotify buying Gimlet and Anchor in 2019, YouTube jumping into podcasting in 2022, Netflix's first podcast agreement in 2025, and plenty more. More than two thousand people have been involved; the On Air 100 lists many of them, and the On Air studio box light has remained constant throughout the ten years. Tickets for the tenth On Air Fest are on sale today, for 40% off. Substack says that "sponsorships will soon be coming to podcasts hosted on Substack", previewing dynamic ad insertion, paid ad-free episodes, and "you’ll soon be able to tap into third-party sponsorship marketplaces to fill the ad breaks you mark in your episodes". You can sign up for early access. (We think that Substack means ads, rather than sponsorships - we've asked.) Meanwhile, beehiiv seems to have leaked that it's about to launch podcast ad monetisation next week. We probably shouldn't mention it until it launches, eh? Spotify shared its RADAR Creators program class of 2026. Rather than only promote the biggest podcasts, the company also offers marketing, editorial and promotional support to upcoming podcast creators and fresh voices. The company has chosen a number of podcasters from the US, UK, Australia, Spain, Argentina, France, Brazil and the Philippines. > > > Read more of today’s podcast industry news stories on the Podnews website: and get our free daily newsletter. Classifieds - your job or ad here Think it. Talk it. Script it. Podnami.com — Start with a conversation, not a blank page. Talk through ideas with AI co-hosts, then turn it into a structured script instantly or enter an idea and a script will be created for you. 🔊 Unlock Podcast Discovery — Grow your audience with Player FM promotional campaigns. Reach active podcast listeners, boost plays, and gain subscribers with easy self-serve campaigns. Start today! One show can be overlooked. Together, we get heard — BackBeat gives independent podcasters more leverage, stronger buyer visibility, and a dedicated sales team keeping your show in the conversation. For podcasters, by podcasters. Let’s talk. Podcasting for Business Conference — Why your business needs a podcast. Transform your podcast into a powerful business asset with the top voices in podcasting, November 16-17, 2026. Check out the agenda and join us. It's at no charge! Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Mowpod, Beehiiv, The $100 MBA, Podbean, Cloud10, The Podglomerate, RedCircle, Scicomm Media, Audiohook, Magid, The Content Creator's Accountant, Cohost, Sounds Profitable, Libsyn, Podscribe, Simplecast, PAVE Studios, audioBoom, Jar Podcast Solutions, Awesound, We Edit Podcasts, Podpage websites, Acast Silver supporters: Audacia Audio, Gamut Podcast Network, Bumper, Sounds Debatable, True Native Media, Nomono, Magellan AI, iono.fm, Castbox, Voxtopica, Locked On Podcast Network, The Podcast Haven, POW PR, Podium, Podcast Movement, Ausha, Red Seat Ventures, Companion Arts, Hypecast, ARN's iHeartPodcast Network Aust, Compliance Podcast Network, Frequency, Truefans, Podium , SoundStack, Blubrry, PodAnalyst, Jonekiri, Tink Media, Health Podcast Library, Rhapsody Voices, Jam Street Media, Lemonada Media, Double Elvis Productions, Transistor, Diversion Podcasts, Headliner, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Rephonic, CreatorX, Podcast Partnership, Content10x, Cleanfeed, Lower Street, Adopter Media, School of Podcasting, Revolver Podcasts, Podigy, Signal Hill Insights Our supporters pay for Podnews, so everyone can read it. Join them today. Image: On Air Fest

Sponsored by SoundStack. Your new revenue opportunity lives in existing podcast content. Rediscover, repurpose, and monetize more of the audio and video you already have with SoundStack AI. Learn more Spotify has launched Spotify Memberships, an enhanced version of its premium membership tool for podcasters. It's available to eligible podcasters hosting with Megaphone or Spotify for Creators. You can see the feature in Two Hot Takes. This isn't a new feature - called "Podcast Subscriptions", it's been available since Apr 2021 within the US, and as of Nov 2021 became available in 34 countries. The product was originally free, with a plan to charge 5%. The rebranded "Spotify Memberships" costs 10% - but adds a clearer in-app subscription process, member badges for comments, and different membership access tiers. Creators can download member email addresses, too. Here is Megaphone's support doc with more information. Has Netflix forgotten about podcasts already? In its Q3 financials, podcasts weren't mentioned at all in the shareholder's letter, nor the earnings call, nor the investor video interview which they posted on, er, YouTube. Netflix revealed revenues were up +12%, but that's the lowest growth in three years. The company, which recently fired its global content chief Bela Bejaria and its movie boss Dan Lin along with laying-off 6% of its staff, acknowledged concern about view-hours growth in the US and Canada - but the things that were supposed to help with that, podcasts, didn't get a mention. The winners of the Signal Awards were announced. There are 1,226 recognised podcasts, and 465 gold winners. The Listener's Choice Awards received more than 260,000 votes. Meanwhile, the nominees of the 2026 Astra Podcast Awards were announced by The Hollywood Creative Alliance. Among this year’s nominees are Good Hang with Amy Poehler, Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard, Call Her Daddy, SmartLess, Crime Junkie, and The Daily. > > > Read more of today’s podcast industry news stories on the Podnews website: and get our free daily newsletter. Classifieds - your job or ad here What Stops a Finance Podcast From Publishing? — Guest scheduling and editing turnaround compound over months until publishing becomes an emergency. This report breaks down the friction points and how shows that last for years avoid them. Free. Audienclelift.com Podcast Growth You Can Trust — Verified Growth™ from Audiencelift.com helps your podcast reach real listeners, and lets listeners choose their preferred listening app. Schedule a Demo. Keep your sponsors. Add ours. — BackBeat is nonexclusive, so you keep your existing relationships while gaining new host-read sponsorship revenue. For podcasters, by podcasters. See if your show fits. Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Mowpod, Beehiiv, Podbean, The $100 MBA, Cloud10, The Podglomerate, RedCircle, Cohost, The Content Creator's Accountant, audioBoom, Libsyn, Magid, Sounds Profitable, Podscribe, Simplecast, PAVE Studios, Audiohook, Scicomm Media, Jar Podcast Solutions, Awesound, Acast, Podpage websites, We Edit Podcasts Silver supporters: Audacia Audio, Gamut Podcast Network, Bumper, Sounds Debatable, True Native Media, Magellan AI, Nomono, SoundStack, Voxtopica, Podium, The Podcast Haven, Tink Media, Podcast Movement, Red Seat Ventures, Companion Arts, Truefans, PodAnalyst, iono.fm, Frequency, Podium , Blubrry, ARN's iHeartPodcast Network Aust, Jonekiri, Hypecast, Ausha, Castbox, Locked On Podcast Network, Compliance Podcast Network, POW PR, Health Podcast Library, Lemonada Media, Rephonic, Double Elvis Productions, CreatorX, Rhapsody Voices, Headliner, Diversion Podcasts, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Transistor, Jam Street Media, Content10x, Podcast Partnership, Cleanfeed, Lower Street, Revolver Podcasts, Adopter Media, Podigy, School of Podcasting, Signal Hill Insights Our supporters pay for Podnews, so everyone can read it. Join them today. Image: Spotify

Sponsored by SoundStack. Your new revenue opportunity lives in existing podcast content. Rediscover, repurpose, and monetize more of the audio and video you already have with SoundStack AI. Learn more Marc Maron's show WTF has resurfaced a 2011 episode with Norm Macdonald - this time, in visual form on YouTube. The show closed in October last year, but this two hour long episode is "animated, by humans," says host Marc Maron - including additional information and photographs from the recording, but without actually animating the main interview. It's well worth a watch as a different, and sustainable, way to visualise. Other non-video visualisation examples include this BBC World Service show (visualised by 1UpMedia); HBO's Ricky Gervais Show, or Liquid Studio's visualisation of the Podnews daily podcast - a final episode of which will be published today as part of a week-long pilot. Bumper has produced a free tool that allows podcasters to "share your engaged views" with potential advertisers. YouTube changed how views are calculated in August - with less than a week's notice - to show a bigger number, which doesn't adequately reflect engagement. It's a two-minute job to connect your YouTube channel, and then produce a nice page that shows views and engaged views, which you can securely share. We hereby expressly permit you, our readers and supporters, to see our YouTube views and engaged views. Podcasts in Africa out-engage global benchmarks: but are priced far lower, according to a new report. The "geography discount" means that the shows, which generated more than $900,000, would have been worth more than $2.3 million if they were priced at the rates in the US, UK or Australia. In 2023, Will Page asked why is all the podcast money in the US? > > > Read more of today’s podcast industry news stories on the Podnews website: and get our free daily newsletter. Classifieds - your job or ad here 💰The Podcasting Business School Newsletter📈 — Podcasting Business School is a free weekly newsletter for podcasters who want more downloads & income. Every Thursday morning, get one practical strategy that you can actually use that week. 🌱 Is Your Show Ready to Grow this Fall? — Get started with Player FM’s self-serve audience growth campaigns this Fall. Low commitment, flexible pricing, and an easy way to reach engaged listeners. Add a client without adding the chaos — Build your production process once in Northflow, then run it across every show and every client. Episodes, guests, assets and approvals in one view. Free trial, and we'll set it up with you. Experience Behind the Mic and Behind your Show. — Led by a host with 20-plus years in podcasting, BackBeat knows how to grow revenue without sacrificing audience trust. For podcasters, by podcasters. Join us. Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Mowpod, Beehiiv, Podbean, The $100 MBA, Cloud10, The Podglomerate, Audiohook, RedCircle, audioBoom, PAVE Studios, Podscribe, Scicomm Media, Cohost, Magid, The Content Creator's Accountant, Libsyn, Sounds Profitable, Simplecast, Jar Podcast Solutions, Awesound, We Edit Podcasts, Acast, Podpage websites Silver supporters: Audacia Audio, Gamut Podcast Network, Bumper, Sounds Debatable, True Native Media, Magellan AI, Nomono, Hypecast, Locked On Podcast Network, Voxtopica, ARN's iHeartPodcast Network Aust, POW PR, Podium, Truefans, SoundStack, Frequency, Blubrry, Podium , Tink Media, Compliance Podcast Network, Companion Arts, Podcast Movement, Ausha, iono.fm, PodAnalyst, Castbox, Jonekiri, The Podcast Haven, Red Seat Ventures, Health Podcast Library, Jam Street Media, Headliner, Transistor, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Rhapsody Voices, Rephonic, Lemonada Media, CreatorX, Diversion Podcasts, Double Elvis Productions, Content10x, Podcast Partnership, Cleanfeed, Adopter Media, Revolver Podcasts, Lower Street, Podigy, School of Podcasting, Signal Hill Insights Our supporters pay for Podnews, so everyone can read it. Join them today. Image: WTF Podcast

Sponsored by SoundStack. Your new revenue opportunity lives in existing podcast content. Rediscover, repurpose, and monetize more of the audio and video you already have with SoundStack AI. Learn more In the US, one in four podcast listeners say that a candidate's podcast appearance might influence their vote. That's according to new data from Sounds Profitable, released today ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The Sounds Profitable data also suggests that podcasting is nearly evenly divided along party lines in terms of number of consumers. However, in terms of time spent listening, independents spend more time with podcasts according to new data also recently released from Edison Research. Jake Shapiro from Apple Podcasts is the guest for the PodBiz podcast this week, talking about HLS ads within Apple Podcasts. His appearance "coincides" with the show becoming available in HLS video for the first time in Apple Podcasts, via Acast. Shapiro notes that "HLS ads are both audio and video". Apple Podcasts will soon start charging advertising networks an impression-based fee for dynamic HLS ads - a charge which Podnews understands has slipped until early 2027. When it does, the company will be charging whether the user is watching or only listening. While Acast's Podcast Pulse might suggest that podcast consumers use both audio and video, in Australia, PodPoll 26 - released today - asked a better question: "how do you prefer to consume podcasts"? Overwhelmingly, podcast consumers prefer to listen, the data shows: 60% saying they preferred audio, while only 23% say they prefer to watch podcasts. The research also shows that 50% of Australians are regular monthly podcast consumers: the first time in this study. We've more numbers from it here. > > > Read more of today’s podcast industry news stories on the Podnews website: and get our free daily newsletter. Classifieds - your job or ad here 💰 Want to learn how to get sponsors? — Join 500+ podcasters inside of the free Podcasting Business School community on Skool for our FREE 3-day Brand Partnership Challenge. The challenge starts on Tuesday, October 20th. Grow YouTube Subscribers + Watch Time — Audiencelift.com helps you attract real subscribers who watch, engage, and come back. Build the watch time and audience momentum your YT channel needs. Book a campaign today! Podcasting for Business Conference — Why your business needs a podcast. Transform your podcast into a powerful business asset with the top voices in podcasting, November 16-17, 2026. Check out the agenda and join us. It's at no charge! Your mic. Your audience. Your decision. — You approve every sponsor and never read an ad you don’t want. BackBeat brings additional revenue without compromising listener trust. For podcasters, by podcasters. Join BackBeat. Gold supporters: Buzzsprout, Mowpod, Beehiiv, Podbean, The $100 MBA, Cloud10, The Podglomerate, Sounds Profitable, audioBoom, Podscribe, Libsyn, Audiohook, RedCircle, The Content Creator's Accountant, PAVE Studios, Scicomm Media, Simplecast, Cohost, Magid, Jar Podcast Solutions, Awesound, Acast, We Edit Podcasts, Podpage websites Silver supporters: Audacia Audio, Gamut Podcast Network, Bumper, Sounds Debatable, True Native Media, Magellan AI, Nomono, Podium , Hypecast, Podium, Tink Media, Blubrry, SoundStack, Frequency, Voxtopica, ARN's iHeartPodcast Network Aust, Locked On Podcast Network, Castbox, PodAnalyst, Red Seat Ventures, Podcast Movement, Ausha, POW PR, Jonekiri, Companion Arts, iono.fm, Truefans, The Podcast Haven, Compliance Podcast Network, Health Podcast Library, Double Elvis Productions, Jam Street Media, Diversion Podcasts, Headliner, Sonic Influencer Marketing, CreatorX, Rhapsody Voices, Lemonada Media, Transistor, Rephonic, Content10x, Podcast Partnership, Cleanfeed, Adopter Media, Revolver Podcasts, Lower Street, Podigy, School of Podcasting, Signal Hill Insights Our supporters pay for Podnews, so everyone can read it. Join them today. Image: Yucel M