Following an announcement from YouTube Premium that they've hit 50 million subscribers worldwide, we have updated our US forecast to reflect the platforms uptick. We now forecast YouTube Premium will hit 29.5 million US subscribers by year-end 2021.

On today's episode, we discuss how Spotify did in Q1, what to make of its new subscriptions for podcasts, and how we expect audio consumption habits to change this year. We then talk about why people still listen to the radio and best practices for voice ads. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer forecasting analyst at Insider Intelligence Peter Vahle.

eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver, junior analyst Blake Droesch, vice president of content studio Paul Verna, and senior analyst at Insider Intelligence Sara M. Watson discuss how social media might (actually) be regulated, social commerce, the ceiling for Disney+, Snapchat rolling out TikTok competitor "Spotlight," Spotify testing Snapchat-like Stories, Facebook paying UK publishers for news in 2021, why you should never trust a raven, and more.

eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver, junior analyst Blake Droesch, vice president of research Jennifer Pearson and vice president of content studio at Insider Intelligence Paul Verna discuss the good, the bad and the ugly of working from home, Instagram for news, "Starbucks Pickup," YouTube's "Direct Response" ads, Spotify's interactive ads, the truth about shooting stars and more.

In this episode, the 'Behind the Numbers' crew new and old—former eMarketer principal analyst and now vice president of content studio Paul Verna, former eMarketer senior analyst and now market strategy manager at Spotify Bryan Yeager, director of content studio Daniel Caridi, director of report editing Rahul Chadha, and podcast host Marcus Johnson tell the story of how and why 'Behind the Numbers' got started, our favorite episodes, and what we expect the future of podcasting to look like. We hope you enjoy. And thank you so much to everyone who's ever listened for helping to make this show what it is.

Pandora outpaces Spotify for brand recognition in US

It appears that Spotify’s podcast investments are paying off. For the first time, Spotify’s US podcast listenership will overtake Apple Podcasts’, according to eMarketer’s latest forecast. This year, 28.2 million people will listen to podcasts on Spotify at least monthly, while 28.0 million will listen via Apple Podcasts. Spotify has experienced significant growth in recent years; the company will grow 41.3% this year.

eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver, junior analyst Blake Droesch and forecasting analyst Peter Vahle at Insider Intelligence discuss Joe Rogan moving exclusively to Spotify, sports trickling back, Twitter letting users limit who replies to them, TikTok AR ads, a grandmother who violated GDPR, an entire indoor town and more.

eMarketer junior analyst Nina Goetzen and forecasting analyst at Insider Intelligence Peter Vahle discuss changing Spotify listening behavior and the company's podcast investments, and they break down how it makes money. Then principal analyst Mark Dolliver joins the show to talk about what young people want from brands, what retailers need to know about shoppers ages 50 and older and the many ways the pandemic is harming children's health.

On today's episode, we discuss the Clubhouse competitors that keep emerging in the social audio space: Who are they, does their proposition make sense, and will they succeed? Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer forecasting analyst Peter Vahle and principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Jeremy Goldman.

eMarketer principal analysts Jeremy Goldman and Jillian Ryan, along with junior analyst at Insider Intelligence Blake Droesch, discuss the work-from-anywhere future, how this years' Super Bowl will be unique, why some retailers are skipping returns, Spotify's emotion-based recommendations, what customers want from chatbots, the ideal length of time you should dunk your Oreo in milk, and more.

eMarketer principal analyst Jeremy Goldman, forecasting analyst Peter Vahle, and vice president of content studio at Insider Intelligence Paul Verna discuss Spotify's strategic positioning as a complete podcasting ecosystem. They then talk about how much time Americans spend on their phones during their lifetime, why Alexa's asking follow-up questions, and what we can expect from the new "Apple One" bundle.

eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver, junior analyst Blake Droesch and vice president of content studio Paul Verna talk about Spotify's purchase of The Ringer, Disney+ reaching 28 million subscribers, Airbnb's brand issue, manipulated Twitter content, emotional Super Bowl ads, polar bears and more.

eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver, junior analyst Blake Droesch and vice president of content studio Paul Verna talk about CCPA's arrival, TikTok's recent security and misinformation issues, Spotify's position on political ads, Facebook's deepfake ban, Delta Air Lines's "binge button" and more.

After a tumultuous year, the social platforms will close 2020 on a high note in terms of ad revenues and users—and with features that closely resemble each other.

This thirst for a visual element to music streaming was evident in some April 2020 data from Nielsen Music as cited by Digital Music News. It found that audio music streaming volumes in the US were down by 6.2% in the week ending March 19 (vs. an eight-week pre-coronavirus baseline) and by 9.2% in the week ending March 26.

Twitch’s deal with the National Music Publishers’ Association must be the first of many: The platform will need to ink deals that actually let streamers use copyrighted music in order to fend off competitors and support its growing music community.

Time spent with digital audio surpassed that of radio for the first time in 2021.

On today's episode, we discuss some digital audio developments from Spotify and iHeartMedia, how podcast advertising can add value, in-car audio entertainment, and what the first flavor of advertising on social audio platforms will look like. We then talk about what to expect from this years' Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Podcast Upfronts, how people are approaching podcast moderation, and the market for podcasts created for children. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer forecasting analyst at Insider Intelligence Peter Vahle.

eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver, junior analyst Blake Droesch and forecasting analyst Peter Vahle discuss Spotify listening behavior, the screen time battle, a new NFL/Amazon deal, movies leapfrogging the cinema, out-of-home advertising in a COVID-19 world, where in America it's illegal to have a mobile phone and more.