Talking ad control and listener trust at The Podcast Show London
Every ad ops decision is a judgment call — and some are a lot harder than they look.
At The Podcast Show London, three podcast publishing leaders faced off in a gameshow-style showdown to answer the question every publisher wrestles with daily: would you let that ad through?
Key takeaways:
- Why human judgment still plays a critical role in podcast ad operations
- How publishers balance revenue opportunities with listener trust
- Why transparency into ad content matters more than ever
- Where IAB categories help and where they fall short
- How different publishers approach brand suitability decisions in practice
The session, Who Let That Ad Through? The Gameshow!, brought together industry leaders playing exaggerated versions of themselves — from “the careful” publisher who lets almost nothing through to “the far-less-careful” one willing to greenlight nearly everything.
Scott Klass served as the game show host and agency account manager, guiding contestants through real-world ad scenarios inspired by the kinds of decisions podcast publishers make every day.
The panel featured:
- Jennifer Louie Oon, Executive Vice President of Sales - DAX US
- Michael Bayston, Global VP of AdTech Solutions - Acast
- Jenni Skaug, Chief Revenue Officer - Audioboom
When ads fit naturally within a show, listeners barely notice. When they don’t, audiences notice immediately.
The big takeaway? Publishers need the right balance between maximizing revenue and protecting the listener experience that keeps audiences coming back.
But making those decisions well requires more than instinct. It requires visibility into what’s actually inside every ad.
That’s exactly what SoundStack has been building with our Ad Control feature — giving publishers greater transparency and control over the ads running across their inventory.
Huge thanks to The Podcast Show, Sounds Profitable, our panelists, and everyone who joined the session.
Ready to talk to us about it directly? Reach out.