Sounds Profitable

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Audiences on AI-Generated Shows, Podcast DAI Comes to beehiiv, & More Oct 30, 2026

Show notes

This week in the business of podcasting:

Sounds Profitable, Coleman Insights, and Locked On are hosting a webinar on November 5 at 2pm ET, “The Power of Community: Why Podcasts Matter.” It presents new research among 2,000 Americans on how podcasts build connections with listeners.
Tom Webster shares survey findings from 5,473 U.S. adults on whether audiences would watch an AI-generated show. Among people who lost a favorite show, 45% would at least somewhat likely watch a new AI season, 41% would not, and views on AI hosts predicted the answer best.
The Small Business Administration now classifies creator-led businesses, podcasters included, under NAICS 5121. That could make it easier for creators to access microloans up to $50,000 and 7(a) loans up to $5 million.
Beehiiv now offers dynamically inserted podcast ads. Publishers can open their inventory, including back catalog episodes, to programmatic buyers alongside host-read ads, and keep 50% to 60% of programmatic revenue.
Tenderfoot TV turned a Radio Rental story into a stop-motion LEGO-style short film on YouTube. Apple Podcasts launched “The Greatest Stories Never Seen,” four animated videos built from podcast audio.

To find links to these, and every article covered in this week’s episode, click here. You can also subscribe to The Download’s newsletter to receive the full issue straight to your email inbox every day.

35% of U.K. Consumes Podcasts, Triton Digital’s AI-to-AI Audio Buy, & More Oct 29, 2026

Show notes

Today in the business of podcasting:

Tom Webster shares new Sounds Profitable research from a survey of 5,473 Americans on whether people would watch an AI-generated revival of a canceled favorite show. The split is nearly even, at 45% likely and 41% unlikely, and views on AI hosts predict the answer best.
RAJAR now measures both listening to and watching podcasts in the U.K., putting total weekly podcast consumption at 35% of the population, up from 26.9% for listening alone.
Triton Digital completes what it calls the first fully automated, AI-to-AI audio ad buy, with agents negotiating and booking a campaign in minutes instead of days.
Digiday looks at how political campaigns are hiring creators ahead of the midterms, with AdImpact expecting $12 billion in total spending.

To find links to these, and every article covered in today’s episode, click here. You can also subscribe to The Download’s newsletter to receive the full issue straight to your email inbox every day.

Beehiiv Rolls Out DAI for Podcasts, Acast’s Q3 Revenue, & More Oct 28, 2026

Show notes

Today in the business of podcasting:

Sounds Profitable, Coleman Insights and Locked On Podcast Network host a November 5 webinar on new research showing how podcasts build community, including that 43% of Americans surveyed have taken a podcast-related community action.
Apple’s Safari 27 now blocks identity-resolution vendors including Unified ID 2.0, LiveRamp and ID5, and early data shows effective CPMs down 4% on iOS and 11% on Mac.
Beehiiv adds dynamic ad insertion for podcasts through AdsWizz, with publishers keeping 50% to 60% of programmatic revenue.
Acast reports record Q3 net sales of SEK 802.3m, up 25%, with North America up 54% and listen-and-view monetization up 20%.

Instagram Goes Longform, Netflix’s New Podcast Acquisitions Head, & More Oct 27, 2026

Show notes

Today in the business of podcasting:

Instagram is testing Features, a new tool for horizontal videos up to 90 minutes long, aimed at podcasters, comedians and other long-form creators. It lets Reels link to full videos and recommends them on Explore.
Former Apple Podcasts executive Steve Wilson joins Netflix to lead podcast content acquisition, starting as a consultant. The hire comes as Netflix cuts about 6% of its workforce.
Supporting Cast data across six partners shows members who use their audio benefits churn at 1.3% a month, compared with 3% for those who don’t. The gap adds up to roughly $82,000 in revenue per 1,000 members over three years.
Nearly 60% of Americans get news from social media, but creators say monetizing it is hard. Brand safety concerns and unpredictable platforms leave most of them preferring subscriptions to ads.

Video to Promote Audio, Podcasters Recognized as Small Businesses, & More Oct 26, 2026

Show notes

Today in the business of podcasting:

Tenderfoot TV turned a Radio Rental episode into a LEGO-inspired stop-motion short on YouTube, while Apple Podcasts launched The Greatest Stories Never Seen, four animated videos built from podcast audio. Both pair original audio with new animation instead of filming hosts at a desk.
The U.S. Small Business Administration now classifies creator-led businesses, podcasters included, under NAICS 5121. The agency says the classification covers 27 million creator-led businesses, and public comments are open through November 20.
YouTube hit a record 15.8% of U.S. TV viewing in August, with adults 50 and older up 9%. That strengthens Google’s pitch for TV ad budgets and puts pressure on networks to defend their rates.
Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert fell out of Edison Research’s top 50 U.S. podcasts, a sign that shows with a stronger YouTube presence are rising over shows built on legacy podcast apps.

Tracking YouTube Engaged Views, How Super Spenders Support Podcasts, & More Oct 23, 2026

Show notes

This week in the business of podcasting:

Right Side Up and Sounds Profitable host a free October 28 webinar on how AI use and discovery affect podcast ad budgets, drawing on The Podcast Landscape 2026 research.
Tom Webster breaks down the Super Spenders report, finding that the 11% of podcast consumers who spend $300 or more account for roughly 62% of recalled podcast-driven spending.
Spotify launches Memberships, letting creators keep 90% of earnings from paid fans, while YMH Studios explains why 12 of its comedy shows launched on day one.
Bumper releases a free tool for sharing YouTube engaged views with advertisers, after YouTube’s change to how it counts a view nearly doubled views for the average podcast.
AudioStack argues podcast buying has outpaced podcast creative and makes the case for dynamic creative matched to each episode’s content.

Podcasting’s Super Spenders, Measuring Baked-In HLS Ads, & More Oct 22, 2026

Show notes

Today in the business of podcasting:

Tom Webster breaks down the new Super Spenders report, finding that the 11% of podcast consumers who spend $300 or more account for roughly 62% of recalled podcast-driven spending, and why they use more platforms and genres than other listeners.
Podscribe and ART19 launch an integration that makes baked-in host-read ads measurable in HLS-delivered podcast episodes, with Daylight Media the first publisher live.
Spotify’s Memberships launch, as YMH Studios’ Alan Abdine explains why 12 of its 35 comedy shows are offering paid memberships on day one.
AudioStack argues podcast buying has outpaced podcast creative and makes the case for dynamic creative that matches each episode’s content.
The Walrus will launch a Canadian podcast network in spring 2027, hosted on Acast with revenue shared with creators.

The U.S. Political Podcasting Picture, Substack Launches Podcast DAI, & More Oct 21, 2026

Show notes

Today in the business of podcasting:

Signal Hill Insights’ Demos+ study of more than 3,000 monthly US podcast consumers finds the audience now skews Independent at 39%, with Democrats at 33% and Republicans at 29%, ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Substack is adding dynamic ad insertion to the podcasts it hosts, with early access opening this week, and Sounds Profitable’s Bryan Barletta tells Adweek buyers will want more detail on attribution partners, DSPs, and analytics.
Point-To-Point Marketing’s Podcast Study 2026 of 1,205 US podcast consumers finds 74% listen to local radio weekly, and 47% of daily radio listeners say host-read ads strongly influence them to try or buy.

Spotify Announces Memberships, The 2026 Signal Award Winners, & More Oct 20, 2026

Show notes

Today in the business of podcasting:

Spotify has unveiled Memberships, letting creators offer exclusive content and community perks for a fee, with creators keeping 90% of earnings and shows needing 100 consumption hours, 100 listeners or viewers and three episodes to qualify.
Bumper released a free tool for sharing YouTube engaged views with advertisers, after YouTube’s late-August change roughly doubled average podcast views without any audience growth.
The Streaming Wars looks at Disney’s new company-wide partnership with Dude Perfect and what it says about paying for contracted revenue instead of speculative growth.
The Signal Awards named their winners, with Good Hang with Amy Poehler taking gold and the listener’s choice prize for Best Host.
Apple explained its Safari block on identity resolution companies, which affects LiveRamp, ID5, The Trade Desk’s UID 2.0, Permutive and Audigent.

Golden Globes Podcasts Revealed, Spotify Expands Audiobook Availability, & More Oct 19, 2026

Show notes

Today in the business of podcasting:

Right Side Up and Sounds Profitable host a free webinar on October 28 about how AI chatbots are changing podcast ad discovery and measurement. It draws on new LLM data from The Podcast Landscape 2026.
IAB Tech Lab finalizes its Podcast Technical Measurement Guidelines v2.3, which clarify download and ad-delivery measurement for audio and video podcasts. CoHost is the first hosting company certified under the new version.
Spotify expands audiobooks from 22 markets to more than 180 by the end of 2026, after its Audiobooks+ add-on passed one million subscribers and $100 million in annual recurring revenue.
Political ad spending for the 2025-26 cycle tops $10 billion as House races drive local demand. New Sounds Profitable research finds one in four likely voters who consume podcasts monthly could be swayed by a candidate’s podcast appearance.
MIDiA Research counts nearly a billion monthly podcast platform users worldwide. YouTube leads with a 32% share, and YouTube and Spotify together hold half of the global market.
The Golden Globes reveal the 30 podcasts eligible for Best Podcast at the 84th ceremony, with 11 new shows joining the list ahead of the December 7 nominations.

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