Frequency And Boostr Partner To Supercharge The Automation Of Host-Read Ad Production

Frequency, the leader in workflow automation and ad management for audio, announces it’s teaming up with Boostr, a premier advertising management platform catering to publishers and media companies. By creating a unified production workflow, Frequency and Boostr will power quicker, more accurate requests for host-read ads. The combined offering brings greater operational efficiencies to podcast networks to drive revenue growth and increased profitability.

The API integration between the two companies connects its podcast ad management platforms to streamline and automate workflows. As flights are added to Booster’s OMS (order management system), production requests are triggered in Frequency with details such as ad types, copy execution, approval requirements, and more.

The automatic creation of production requests feeds into Frequency’s Production Automation workflow, where teams can easily manage back and forth to finalize host-read ads for launch. With requests centralize and communication streamlined, users can track details, set reminders, use bulk editing tools, QA recordings, and provide feedback.

“Together, Boostr and Frequency power the full production workflow to revolutionize the way teams work,” said Patrick O’Leary, Founder and CEO of Boostr. “The elimination of redundant tasks and manual data entry saves time for ad operations while ensuring production requests are accurate for shows.”

“Now that Frequency provides a full suite of workflow automation tools for podcast networks, our next mission is to connect to other essential platforms like Boostr,” says Pete Jimison, CEO of Frequency. “We’re pioneering the infrastructure for scalable growth, automating the entire ad ops workflow through key integrations. For podcasting to grow revenue, the focus must shift from administration to innovation.”

Interested in learning more? Visit frequencyads.com or contact sales@frequencyads.com.

Realm Welcomes Kids And Family Audiobook Publishing Legend Tim Ditlow To Board Of Directors

Realm, the industry-leading podcast studio and one of the world’s fastest-growing independent podcast networks, proudly announced the addition of Tim Ditlow, a distinguished figure in children’s audiobook publishing, to its Board of Advisor. Ditlow, with over four decades of experience in the children’s audio industry, will bring valuable insights to Realm’s new leadership in the Kids and Family sector.

Tim Ditlow’s deep roots in the recording industry, coupled with a lifelong passion for stories, make him an unparalleled authority in children’s audio and book publishing. His impressive career includes leadership roles at Listening Library, Random House, Brilliance Audio, and Amazon’s Children’s Publishing, where he played pivotal roles in acquiring, producing, and overseeing a multitude of iconic audio titles, including the internationally acclaimed Harry Potter series.

His contributions to the industry have been recognized with multiple Grammy nominations and awards, as well as commendation from the White House for his work on the Year of the Young Reader. In the past decade, Tim served as VP of Content, for Epic, the leading digital reading platform for kids, where he built a library of over 40,000 titles from 250 top publishers.

Molly Barton, CEO and Co-Founder of Realm, expressed her enthusiasm, saying, “Tim is a true legend in the children’s audiobook publishing world, and his wealth of experience and industry knowledge is an incredible asset for Realm. We share a passion for finding new ways to bring immersive and engaging audio storytelling to families worldwide, and we are thrilled to welcome him to our Board of Advisors.”

Ditlow shared his excitement about joining Realm, stating, “I am excited for this opportunity to advise alongside Molly’s talented Board members in order to support and grow Realm’s phenomenal roster of talent and licensing partners.”

Realm’s board includes media visionary and Time 100 alum Lauren Zalanick, who has previously advised Gimlet and Ira Glass’ Serial Productions; Michalel Smith, NPR’s Chief Marketing Officer; Russell Binder, President of IP accelerator Striker Entertainment; and Marci Wiseman, award-winning producer and former Co-President of Blumhouse TV. In his new advisory role at Realm, Ditlow will bring his vast experience to further enhance Realm’s mission to develop, produce, distribute, and monopolize immersive audio series in collaboration with top-tier talent and entertainment companies.

Realm expanded into the Kids and Family audio sector in 2023 with the acquisition of the Peabody award winning kids audio streaming platform Pinna featuring an extensive library of licensed content and a slate of 150+ wholly-owned titles. These include award-winning kids and family audio series like Grimm, Grimmer, Grimmest, Opal Watson: Private Eye (soon to be a 2-book series with HarperCollins), Totally Unauthorized Minecraft Fan Show, Quentin & Alfie (soon to be a four book series with FSG/MacMillan) and A-Z Mysteries produced with Penguin Random House inspired by the bestselling book series by Ron Roy.

Lemonada Media Announces New Partnership With Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex

Lemonada Media, the award-winning podcast network announced a new creative partnership with Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex. As part of their new deal, Lemonada will distribute for all audio platforms and also develop a new original podcast series as yet untitled hosted by Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex.

Archetypes,” a record-breaking podcast exploring the labels that try to hold women back, will be available across all podcast platforms for the first time — with Lemonada overseeing ad sales and distribution. “Archetypes” has seen over 10 million downloads, averaging nearly a million listens per episode and debuted as Spotify No. 1 podcast in 47 countries around the world.

Listeners tuned in as: Marah Carey spoke about the definition of being a diva; Mindy Kaling celebrated the choice to be single; Pamala Adlon lifted the lid on the pressure to be a wife and a mother; Issa Rae and Zine Fumudoh unpacked the loaded misconception that often comes with being a woman of color; and Jameela Jamil and Shohreh Agdashloo spoke about the courage that it takes to step up and speak out, even when it puts everything on the line.

These singular discussions — with notable women, friends, comedians, activists, historians, and experts — transcend individual episodes for a dynamic cultural conversation about how women can reject, reclaim, and redefine these archetypes, on their own terms.

“We are beyond honored that Meghan has trusted us to help democratize access to ‘Archetypes,’ and that so many more people around the world will have access to the series soon. Meghan’s talent as host, creator and conversationalist is unparalleled and we are thrilled to co-create a new series with her that fosters her approach to creating art that matters,” shares Lemonada’s CEO and co-founder, Jessica Cordova Kramer.

“As we’ve started development with The Duchess of Sussex, we are blown away by her collaborative spirit and clear vision, along with her deep desire to build compassion and community through this work. The Lemonada team felt immediate kinship with Meghan and the Archewell Productions team, and we are delighted to be working together,”adds Lemonade’s Chief Creative Officer and co-founder, Stephanie Wittles Wachs.

“I’m proud to now be able to share that I am joining the brilliant team at Lemonada to continue my love of podcasting,” said Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex. “Being able to support a female founded company with a roster of thought provoking and highly entertaining podcasts is a fantastic way to kick off 2024. Our plan to re-release Archetypes so that more people can now have access to it, as well as launching a dynamic new podcast are well in the works. I’m so eager to be able to share it soon, and am overjoyed to be joining the Lemonada family.”

“Archetypes” joins Lemonada’s award-winning lineup of chart topping podcasts including “Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfys” which was named the 2023 Show of the Year by Apple; “Blind Plea,” which launched to #1 overall on the Apple Podcast charts; “Funny Cuz It’s True with Elyse Meyers”, which launched to #1 in comedy on the Apple Podcast charts; Gracie award-winners “Last Day” and “Believe Her,” “Choice Words with Samantha Bee,” as well as Webby award-winners, “Add to Cart with Kulap Vilaysack & SuChin Pak.”

NZME Secures Exclusive Partnership With TED

A new multi-year partnership between New Zealand Media and Entertainment and globally renowned TED confirmed NZME as the exclusive sales representative for the popular podcast network in New Zealand.

Under this agreement NZME’s Podcast Network will represent TED’s podcast slate in New Zealand serving as the sole sales representatives for the advertising inventory in all TED podcasts to New Zealand clients.

The partnership marks another milestone for NZME’s Podcast Network, which boasts more than 86 million podcast downloads in the past year alone.

Driven by the hugely popular TED Talks Daily, the TED podcast slate attracts an audience of tens of thousands of monthly listeners across New Zealand and 214,000 monthly downloads in January 2024. With a diverse line-up the slate covers a further 20+ additional shows exploring topics from artificial intelligence to business, health, technology, and work featuring insights from leading thinkers and creators.

James Butcher, NZME Head of Digital Audio, says: “Everyone has heard of TED Talks — it’s a globally renowned brand and massively popular, so we’re thrilled to be partnering with TED podcasts exclusively here in New Zealand.

“This is another example of NZME’s ongoing commitment to expand our portfolio of diverse and engaging podcasts for our audience. We’re really proud to continue to drive listenership and increase the amount of unique, compelling podcasts we have available, and we are confident we’ll propel TED Podcasts’ content to new heights in New Zealand,” he says.

Sarah Catran, NZME GM Podcast Commercial and Partnerships, adds: “It’s great to deliver world-class content to our audiences and advertisers through our partnership with TED. This collaboration opens up new and exciting opportunities for advertisers to leverage this distinctive podcast network, connecting with New Zealanders through an expanded array of international material.”

Laura Beyer, Senior Director of TED Partnerships, says: “We’re excited to bring TED’s audio content to New Zealand, where it’s long had a strong following of people watching TED Talks online and hosting independently organized TEDx events in their local communities. “This will now enable us to reach a more global audience with a diverse range of topics — from technology to business to design — and provide access to TED content in a new format.”

Travis Albritton Joins Amaze Media Labs As Head of Marketing

Amaze Media Labs announces the addition of Travis Albritton as Head of Marketing.

Travis Albritton, a long time podcast industry veteran, spending four years as the Head of Content at Buzzsprout before launching his own production agency, Honest Podcasts, has been brought on board at Amaze Media Labs to lead marketing efforts specifically around their audience lift services and branded content.

He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience that will enhance Amaze Media Lab’s product roadmap and marketing strategy as podcast networks and brands continue to focus on audience growth and retention.

“With the launch of our new podcast promotion platform, Trailergram.co, we quickly realized the single biggest challenge in this rapidly growing space is helping content creators reach the right target audience to listen to the content they’re creating at a price point that fits within the monetization framework of the podcast industry,” said Amaze Media Labs Founder Robert Tuchman.

“Our team was fortunate enough to connect with Travis who used our products and was impressed with what were doing in the audience space. We love his unique experience and skills that he brings to the podcast industry. His knowledge of podcast marketing and product development will help us create better experiences for our clients and expand our footprint in the paid audience growth segment of our industry. The fact that he’s a real-life rocket scientist certainly didn’t hurt either.”

“I’m thrilled to be joining the Amaze Media Labs team and for the opportunity to develop and launch innovative content production solutions for podcast creators, networks, and brands. 2024 is shaping up to be a banner year for content marketing, and I’m excited to be a part of it with the leader in the space,” said Travis Albritton, Head of Marketing at Amaze Media Labs.

About Amaze Media Labs

Founded in 2020 by Robert Tuchman, Brett Skalr, and Stephen Master, Amaze Media Labs was built to help brands succeed on the next frontier of community engagement with podcasts. The Amaze Media Labs platform consists of branded podcasts and audience development solutions, like Trailergram. For more information, visit amazemedialabs.com and Trailergram.co.

Ausha Officially Launches A Game-Changing New Tool For Enhancing Podcast Visibility

Ausha, a leader in Podcast Marketing, is thrilled to announce of the PSO Control Panel, an innovative tool designed to enhance podcast visibility on major platforms like Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

In an increasingly crowded listening apps ecosystem, podcasters often struggle to be picked, even when producing high-quality content. Recognizing this challenge, Ausha took a unique approach to address this issue: the PSO (Podcast Search Optimization) Control Panel. This cutting-edge feature promises to revolutionize podcast visibility on key platforms like Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

“Ausha is deeply dedicated to equipping podcasters with the most advanced tools for amplifying their audience reach. In determining which tools to incorporate into Ausha, we have collaborated directly with podcasters. This led to the creation of The PSO Control Panel, a pioneering solution that significantly boosts podcast visibility for the intended audience,” explains Maxime Piquet, CEO of Ausha. “Working together lets us meet our users’ expanding needs and keep up with the fast-changing podcast industry. At Ausha, innovation is key, and we promise to regularly update the PSO Control Panel, ensuring it remains a leading tool for podcast optimization.”

The PSO Control Panel is the result of an extensive collaboration with a dedicated group of 100 podcast creators from around the world who played a pivotal role in shaping and refining the tool. During the beta testing phase, they were able to experience the PSO Control Panel firsthand and were impressed by the results they achieved.

The PSO Control Panel has shown some promising initial results. For instance, the podcast What Fresh Hell, focused on parenthood, reach #1 on Apple Podcasts for the keyword ‘Parenting Tips’ within just 24 hours. How? By strategically optimizing its metadata and consistently monitoring its PSO strategy daily with the PSO Control Panel, just like an SEO expert would do.

Accessible now to Ausha users, the PSO Control Panel simplifies the process of enhancing podcast visibility into 4 straightforward steps:

Set up your keywords, with or without AI assistance.

Monitor your rankings on Apple Podcasts and Spotify in real-time.

Improve your metadata thanks to your results

Become the #1 in Apple Podcasts & Spotify search results.

Over 100 New York City Public Schools To Replace Bells With Educational Podcasts

SonarCloud and ABF Creative have embarked on a groundbreaking initiative, starting with 100 New York City public schools. Traditional school bells will be replaced with “Mini-Pods,” bite-sized educational podcasts. Launching in February, coinciding with Black History Month, this innovative change aims to engage over 300,000 students daily with rich educational content. The initiative expected to make 10 million monthly impressions, is set to reimagine educational delivery.

The traditional school bell is being replaced by 60-second podcast, seamlessly integrating into the school day. Reflecting the diverse student body of New York City, these podcasts are rich in cultural diversity and inclusivity. February’s focus on Black historical figures will lead to monthly themes, including social-emotional learning, women’s history, and more, enriching learning and offering new avenues for responsible brand engagement.

Following New York’s lead, expansion plans are already underway for 1,000 more schools nationwide, including Chicago and Los Angeles. The rapid adoption of Mini Pods is attributed to SonarCloud’s sound management platform, which transforms any school PA system into a cost-effective cloud-enabled device. The partnership with ABF Creative ensures access to safe, educational content, enhancing students’ experiences.

Jesse Baptiste of Sonarcloud states, “Education is continually evolving; our methods must, too. Replacing traditional school bells with educational podcasts is more than a sonic change — it’s a gateway to continuous, engaging, and interactive learning.”

Anthony Frasier, CEO of ABF Creative, adds, “Our goal is to integrate educational narratives into the daily school rhythm, enriching each learning moment. This initiative reflects our community’s diversity and heralds a new era storytelling, learning, and impactful connections.”

For more information on this transformative initiative and partnership opportunities, visit visit GetSonarCloud.com. Join the future of education and brand engagement with Sonarcloud and ABF Creative.

Audacy Renews Relationship With Veritonic

Veritonic, the industry’s comprehensive audio analytics and research platform, announced that Audacy has renewed its partnership with the company. The continued partnership will allow Audacy to provide their clients and advertising partners with insightful and comprehensive data that can be used to optimize their audio campaigns, resulting in an increase in both reach and ROI.

“Measuring the impact of our total Audio campaigns — including radio, streaming, and podcast advertising — with Veritonic allows us to show the power of Audacy’s content in connecting with audiences and mobilizing customers,” said Idil Cakim, Senior Vice President of Research and Insights, Audacy. “We’re thrilled to continue our partnership and enable our clients and advertising partners to leverage audio to achieve the utmost in competitive edge, reach, and ROI.”

“We take great pride in our ongoing partnership with Audacy, supporting their clients and advertising partners with unparalleled data & insights to inform their audio strategies,” said Scott Simonelli, CEO of Veritonic. “Through the utilization of our creative measurement and brand lift solutions, Audacy can continue to empower their clients with the data required to fine-tune their campaigns and ensure a robust return on their investment in the channel.”

Veritonic’s measurement platforms and tools enable Audacy to pressure test the sonic qualities of the company’s clients’ messaging and advise them on the optimal sounds that will generate positive emotions, recall and action. Audacy uses Veritonic’s audio-first Brand Lift and Creative Measurement solutions to measure the impact of their clients’ audio campaigns on key brand performance metrics, across the funnel.

The studies provide a deeper understanding of how audio contributes to achieving a client’s goals in terms of emotional resonance, awareness, favorability, intent, and recall. By equipping brands with these tools for validating their investments, Veritonic helps mitigate risks and enhance the performance and ROI audio across various formats, including streaming and audio and podcast advertising.

Veritonic’s AI-powered Creative Measurement solution provides brands and agencies with robust pre-market insights that delve into the emotional resonance, recall, and engagement of audio content. With this actionable information in hand, brands and agencies can optimize their content for maximum impact, ensuring that every element of their audio campaign captures the attention and hearts of their target audience.

The exclusive provider of independent and holistic audio data and analytics, the Veritonic platform is supporting the audio strategies of leading brands, agencies, and platforms around the world.

Introducing The MOSAIC Collective – Empowering Diversity in Audio

The ALIVE Podcast Network and Barometer are proud to announce the launch of the MOSAIC Collective, a groundbreaking initiative that is transforming the audio industry by driving equity through transparency. MOSAIC aims to use data to change the narrative surrounding diverse voices, empowering brands to support inclusivity without compromising on brand standards or performance.

In today’s world, many creators are unaware of the concept of brand suitability, which is often used against them to exclude their content from advertising opportunities. “With the creation of MOSAIC, we aim to bridge the gap between brands and diverse voices,” said Angel Livas, founder of the ALIVE Podcast Network and co-creator of the MOSAIC Collective. “We’re providing more opportunities for support and enhancing transparency by educating creators about brands’ requirements when purchasing podcast ads.”

MOSAIC’s mission is to focus on diversity in its broadest sense, allowing each member organization to define it based on the diversity it represents. From amplifying female voices to empowering LGBTQ+ and black creators, as well as diverse media owners and advertisers seeking to support underrepresented voices, the collective brings together stakeholders from across the value chain. Approximately 47% of the collective are publishers, 18% are advertisers and the rest are ad tech providers working to facilitate our noble initiatives. Of the publishers represented, over half (approximately 56%) have diverse ownership.

The MOSAIC Collective is working on two crucial initiatives:

  • Curating scaled inventory sets: Through this initiative, MOSAIC aims to provide vehicles for brands to buy diverse voices at a scale larger than any individual member could achieve on their own. By curating inventory that represents various diverse communities, MOSAIC will not only amplify diverse voices but also dispel stereotypes about suitability associated with each group of content through research.
  • Monitoring success for diversity support: Participating creators’ feeds will have the opportunity to monitor monetization using the AB Daily Monitoring solution. This data will help quantify the financial support going to diverse media owners and diverse voices. It will also serve as a baseline and recurring check-up to ensure equitable revenue is being generated for these creators. Additionally, MOSAIC collaborates with participating and external advertisers to track their buys through attribution, demonstrating the buying power of the audiences reached through diverse voices.

“The MOSAIC Collective strives to overcome stereotypes with transparent data about the suitability of diverse voices’ content while capturing data that highlights the performance and buying power of these communities,” said Tamara Zubatiy, co-founder of Barometer and co-creator of the MOSAIC Collective. “We are dedicated to reshaping the audio industry and driving positive change for underrepresented voices.”

To date, the MOSAIC Collective is composed of publishers, media owners, advertisers, and ad-tech companies, each member of the collective is committed to investing 90 minutes (per month) to change the trajectory of transparency in audio for underrepresented voices. The collective aims to foster community growth and conduct extensive research to gain greater insights. “By working together, we can ensure that investing in audio is inclusive an suitable by design.”

With the MOSAIC Collective, a new era of transparency and equity in audio is emerging. Together, we can create a more inclusive and diverse landscape that empowers creators, supports brands, and amplifies underrepresented voices.

AudioUK Launches 2024 Manifesto For UK Podcast, Radio And Audiobook Industry

AudioUK, the trade association for podcast, radio and audiobook producers, has launched a new four-point manifesto, detailing policies to grow the UK’s audio production sector.

The manifesto, entitled ‘The Sound of Success’, calls for political parties to support audio production in the way that successive governments have already given a boost to other content production sectors, for example, high-end and children’s TV, animation, video games and film.

An Audio Production Tax Relief, would, according to the calculations of Communications Chambers, deliver a net gain to HM Treasury through attracting international investment into UK-made podcasts from brands, broadcasters and platforms.

Audio-specific funds will grow the sector both internationally and domestically. A Global Audio IP Fund would mirror the success of the Global IP Fund, to which the current government has just re-emphasized its support, in developing international podcast formats and IP. Audio IP has already been used to develop spinoffs including TV, books, live shows, merchandise and more, examples being Happy Place, Help, I Sexted My Boss, The Girlfriends and others. Meanwhile, reinstating finance for the Audio Content Fund would reinvigorate the plurality of PBS content for UK audiences on commercial and community radio, as it did so successfully from 2019 to 2023.

Skills funding for the audio sector, previously used to set up AudioUK’s now self-support Audiotrain programme, would enable skills and training in podcasting production and entrepreneurship to allow the sector to meet the anticipated increase in demand for audio in the UK grows, both in audiobooks and podcasting.

Lastly, as the BBC takes its place in the wider podcast market through its expansion of BBC Studios’ audio production arm, a commitment to, in the next BBC Charter, introduce 100% competition to make non-news BBC radio and audio content would ensure UK independent producers were able to contribute fully to the BBC having a wide range of viewpoints, stories, ideas and perspectives.

Chloe Straw, Managing Director of AudioUK, said: “As the global podcast and audiobook industries show sustained exponential growth, coupled with the enduring strength of radio reach in the UK, it is imperative for the government to actively champion and foster this thriving creative sector. Aligning it with other creative industries in the UK will empower the sector to fully capitalize on the vast domestic and global opportunities available.”

‘The Sound of Success: A Manifesto for the UK independent podcast, radio and audiobook industry 2024’ can be downloaded from here.