The news: Audioboom agreed to acquire Adelicious, potentially creating the UK’s largest homegrown podcast network with 125 million monthly downloads, per Podnews. The deal will cement Audioboom’s expansion and amplify its global reach through Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other major platforms. Our take: As podcasting shifts from a fragmented space to a few dominant networks, smaller creators risk losing ad revenue and visibility. Advertisers that balance buys across major platforms and independent shows will stretch their budgets further—and stay closer to engaged, loyal audiences.

The news: Podcast ad spending intention will reach an 11-year high in 2025, and more advertisers are investing in the medium than ever, per a Cumulus Media and Signal Hill Insights report. Podcast ad spend intention reached 69% among agencies and advertisers surveyed, the highest in the eleven years tracked by Cumulus and Signal Hill. 78% are already investing in podcast advertising, five times higher than the amount investing in 2015. Our take: As listenership spikes, podcasts will continue being a key investment for savvy advertisers—and those who know how to maximize the medium’s potential will come out on top.

Spotify is doubling down on podcast engagement: New features arrive as listenership and advertiser demand both hit record highs.

Spotify keeps Bill Simmons on board: The Ringer founder extends his contract as Spotify pivots toward video podcasting and sustainable ad-driven content.

The programmatic digital audio services category is more than podcasts.

How can Spotify grow its advertiser appeal? The music platform must tread carefully to attract advertisers while retaining customers.

YouTube is the preferred platform for podcasts, and Netflix wants in: Marketers must recognize podcasts aren’t audio-only to effectively reach consumers.

YouTube redefines podcasting: Video formats capture 43% of weekly podcast listeners, far outpacing traditional audio-only platforms.

Spotify launches its own ad exchange: The company will offer video inventory before eventually expanding to audio.

Digital audio will have 197.5 million adult listeners in the US this year, but each listener will generate only $36.05 in ad revenues. Radio fares slightly better at $49.10, but both pale next to most other major video platforms.

On today's episode, we discuss the advertising industry's recent love affair with generative AI, what happens inside the minds of Gen Z consumers, why Spotify is pivoting, Twitter's new CEO writing the the company's next chapter, how podcast advertising is doing, how much people spend when they go to Las Vegas, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our director of forecasting Oscar Orozco and analysts Bill Fisher and Max Willens.

Spotify’s $20 billion podcasting dream is a long way off: Despite a strong quarter for revenue and user growth, investments will take longer than expected to pay dividends.

It’s time for podcast advertising to mature with its audience: The format has reached mainstream success, but ad solutions are lagging behind.

Gen Z listeners aren’t big on podcasts: That’s a problem for Spotify, which is trying hard to get young listeners on board.

Podcasts are expected to reach more than 500 million listeners worldwide by 2024. With this growth and innovations in podcast advertising in mind, many marketers now see the channel as essential to their media buying strategy.

Spotify adds clickable ads to its advertising lineup: The audio streaming company aims to transform podcast advertising with visual and interactive experiences.

Spotify’s video podcasting push could bring in more users and marketers: Podcasts are already gaining steam with both groups, and video will help make the medium—and ads in it—even more engaging.

On today's episode, we discuss some updates in the social audio landscape, whether convenience is outweighing price, if fashion rental can make a comeback, podcast ads versus other ad formats, changes in millennials' spending behaviors, how football players are similar to bears in more than just stature, and more. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer analyst Nina Goetzen, forecasting analyst Peter Vahle, and analyst at Insider Intelligence Blake Droesch.

On today's episode, we discuss what brand-new forecasts the forecasting team cooked up in Q1, including time spent with TikTok and some direct-to-consumer (D2C) numbers. We then talk about say-through rates for voice ads, the battle between host-read and preproduced ads, and how knowledge workers will soon use a virtual assistant every day. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer senior director of forecasting Shelleen Shum, directors of forecasting Oscar Orozco and Cindy Liu, and forecasting analyst at Insider Intelligence Peter Vahle.

eMarketer forecasting analyst at Insider Intelligence Peter Vahle discusses the latest podcast deals and what the mean, how listenership is changing, and the state of podcast advertising. He then talks about the recent Unity and Snap mobile gaming partnership, YouTube's 15-second audio ads, and which sports Americans are currently most comfortable attending in-person.