Audio moves to the big stage - The Short Stack
So come on and bring your jukebox money… (“Love Shack”)
Friends,
Sometimes, the business of audio – podcasting in particular – reminds me of some of the storied local music scenes of my younger years – my formative years.
I’m thinking about Seattle in the 90s -- the birth of Grunge with bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, and so many more. And LA was an equally great spot to be in the 90s, where you could see Alternative coming of age in bands like STP and Incubus in tiny venues like the Roxy or Viper Room on Sunset Blvd. These were the beginnings of movements fueled by unique creativity, energy, and love of/dedication to all that it was about.
The fans who “got it” REALLY got it. But for those movements to really grow, more people needed to get it. Once the broader business world understood the value, in addition to all of those adoring audiences, grow they did.
Granted, this isn’t an exact analogy, but sometimes podcasting feels a bit like one of these monumental social shifts. What started as more niche, fueled by passionate people who really understood it, podcasting has now become a core part of the lives of legions of loyal listeners. And that cat is long out of the bag – there are nearly 600 million podcast listeners across the globe and that number is only growing.
Yet, as we all point out all the time, ad budgets still aren’t following the passion. Recent data from WARC (one of the first research entities to originally point out the "investment gap” in audio) and Audacy puts the disparity in the U.S. at around 25% ad-supported consumption to just 8.4% of spend.
So, I was thrilled to see audio making serious noise this past week at Cannes. We all showed up; a range of businesses – from networks and tech companies to big media and myriad creators – were all there making a case for this format that relays stories and information like no other. And, similar to Possible, Advertising Week, and other “big shows,” it’s significant that this is happening at Cannes. Alongside events that are more niche to the podcast and radio spaces, the bigger industry summits represent a critical expansion to help the rest of the world – including advertisers – really get it.
I talk a bit more about what I saw/heard at the show in my LinkedIN post here. Have a look, and let’s keep the momentum going!
Mike Reznick , President & COO 
“Programmatic innovation, improved identity solutions and more accessible inventory have brought streaming audio firmly into the mainstream. Even in the last 18 months, panelists noted a surge in innovation, providing advertisers with more tools than ever to plan, activate and measure audio with the same sophistication they use for search and social.”
“While our primary focus is on solving video podcast distribution, HLS streaming also offers significant advantages for audio-only podcasts. HLS can deliver adaptive bitrate audio streams, automatically adjusting quality based on network conditions, providing crystal-clear audio on fast connections while ensuring uninterrupted playback on slower networks.”
“We’re honored that an organization as esteemed as The Associated Press has trusted us with such a critical function – the effective delivery of fact-based news to listeners everywhere.... There’s a lot out there that can hamper the dissemination of essential information. The mechanics of that dissemination...should never be a part of the problem.”
As articulated by Jon Stephenson, we're thrilled to announce our partnership with The AP to power their streaming audio around the world.
Podcast Movement 2025 is right around the corner, and Stackers will be there as always. One of the most critical podcast-specific events of the calendar year, this year’s show in Dallas promises the wealth of education and practical insight we’ve all come to expect from PM. We’ll once again “own” the Industry Expert Talks stage – there to welcome podcast businesses of all stripes, lead a great panel of luminaries (details to come), and more.