Gen Z’s audio habits are rapidly shifting as streaming, social discovery, and multitasking reshape engagement. Music still dominates, but video podcasts and always-on listening are fragmenting attention and redefining how content is found and consumed.

IHeartMedia earnings show the power of podcasts: Though the format has its challenges, strong growth will make it a priority for audio platforms.

SiriusXM and iHeartMedia eye scale: Merger talks aim to pool reach and ad heft as radio revenues stall and digital adoption rises.

YouTube leans on SiriusXM’s ad infrastructure: The radio company is now the exclusive ad partner for YouTube audio, including video podcasts.

Nearly half of US adults say TV and streaming drug commercials feel out of touch and downplay serious side effects.

The Trade Desk heads into Q4 facing simultaneous pressure from Amazon’s fast-expanding DSP and agency frustration over its forced migration from Solimar to Kokai. Amazon’s 0–1% fees, new offsite inventory, and closer ties to Omnicom have sparked reports of meaningful budget shifts away from TTD—an inflection point that challenges its premium pricing. At the same time, agencies describe Kokai as unstable and harder to use, with bugs affecting campaign launches during the most execution-heavy quarter of the year. The convergence raises a key question for marketers: Is TTD’s longstanding grip on open-web programmatic still durable, or beginning to loosen?

Podcast engagement and streaming variety are fueling rapid digital audio growth in Canada as listeners spend far more time with these digital platforms than with traditional radio.

Linear TV and streaming have mastered how to present ad products alongside their top talent to win marketing dollars, and more audio players are following suit. On Monday, SiriusXM hosted “Built with Audio,” an upfront-style showcase scheduled around Advertising Week New York that packaged talent interviews and performances with executive presentations tailored to an audience of marketers.

The news: Despite global cuts in ad budgets, several companies are diving head-first into their own ad offerings to diversify revenues. HP is reportedly pitching HP Media Network, an ad network highlighting laptop and desktop ads. The move includes ads on HP computers and apps, offsite ads, placements in social and email campaigns, and a free ad-supported TV service. Our take: Introducing ad offerings isn’t necessarily a lost cause—but knowing how to position new ad products is key to succeeding in a time when advertisers are increasingly hesitant to invest without measurable results.

The news: Tech company Hewlett Packard (HP) is reportedly pitching HP Media Network, an ad network focused on laptop-targeted ads and desktop streaming, per Adweek. HP Media Network will sell ads that show up on HP computers and apps, and will promote its first-party data to give adtech firms access to offsite ads. Our take: HP’s launch could capitalize on growth in the desktop and laptop ad market—but the company needs to prove its offerings as distinctly beneficial compared with competitors, or risk falling victim to advertisers’ concerns over investing in new offerings as budgets are slashed.

The news: Satellite radio company SiriusXM is launching a lower cost ad-supported option in its effort to compete against streaming music giants like Spotify and Apple Music. The ad-supported plan, known as SiriusXM Play, costs under $7 per month, with an ad load around half of traditional AM/FM radio stations’. Our take: SiriusXM’s ad-supported pivot marks its most direct challenge to major digital audio streamers like Spotify in an overdue push to modernize. By introducing an ad-supported, low-cost tier, SiriusXM is entering the same conversion funnel that drives Spotify’s growth—beginning with scale and monetizing with ads.

Programmatic plays a small but growing role in digital audio services ad spending. Major digital audio platforms are leaning in.

How SiriusXM plans to compete with Spotify: After a failed music streaming venture, the company is reinvesting in its car business.

Ad budgets are slowly migrating from terrestrial radio to digital platforms, but the shift is stymied by slow platform subscriber growth and by YouTube.

SiriusXM struggles to pull off streaming: A low revenue forecast prompts the company to reexamine its strengths in a crowded field.

A decision against SiriusXM’s cancellation process underlines the brand risks of burdensome subscription practices as the FTC tightens consumer protections.

YouTube is the preferred podcast platform among US listeners of this medium, according to Morning Consult. Spotify takes second place, followed by Apple Podcasts and Pandora.

Meta getting ready for more layoffs: Thousands of jobs could be lost as the company tightens its belt before Zuckerberg goes on leave. The cuts could spur other Big Tech companies to continue shedding headcount.

After strong growth, digital audio subscriber numbers will slow. And a handful of companies will shape what US digital audio users will listen to—and how they will listen—in the coming years.