From Bundaberg in Queensland, the latest from podnews.net with Central Talent Booking: transform your podcast guest line-up. An arrest has been made in connection with a murder in Australia 27 years ago. Queensland police have confirmed to Meshel Laurie, the host of Australian True Crime, that it was a listener to her podcast who provided information leading to the arrest last Thursday of Keith Lees, now age 72.
Lees was the subject of an Australian True Crime episode released on December the 23rd. He'd gone on the run after being questioned by police in June. The show's been with Acast since 2020. At CES, microphone manufacturer Shure has released the MV7i. It's a new USB microphone which allows you to plug in a second XLR microphone of your choice. More than 60 billion minutes of podcast content was downloaded through the Audioboom platform in 2024.
According to the company's review of the year, the company made $60 million for its creators. It's not just where you say it, it's how you say it. And Cumulus Media and Westwood One have published a best practice creative handbook to help advertisers know what works and what doesn't. Great creative can drive three to four times more ROI, according to the data.
Ausha has added two new updates to its podcast search optimization control panel, keyword rankings and competitor benchmarking. The new tools are available to all podcasters, whether they're hosted with Ausha or not. Audacy and Claritas announced a partnership at CES to deliver enhanced measurement capabilities for advertising clients. The tool works with both broadcast and digital audio campaigns.
After NPR switched to using Megaphone to host its podcast in 2023, NPR is itself no longer listed as being a podcast host that's compliant with the IAB podcast measurement guidelines. Megaphone, though, is version 2.2 compliant. Now, the IAB requires annual recertification. Yet four companies still appearing in the IAB's list were last certified in 2021. Three from iHeart, Omny Studio, Spreaker and Voxnest, and the German podcast host, Audiorella.
And if you found a new random podcast app and you want to check what the user agent is, then we link to how to check today, thanks to the power of OP3. Talking of which, the iHeart app is now using new user agents following a redesign just before Christmas. The OPAWG list is already updated, of course. We link to that today from our show notes and our newsletter at podnews.net. And in podcast news, we didn't turn out okay with Jenny Monness has joined the fwd network.
The penultimate episode of Cold Tapes has just dropped. It's a murder mystery with a difference. If you're in the UK, you could receive the prestigious award of Super Sleuth of the Year at CrimeCon 2025 and a £10,000 reward. The show is on Wondery+. After more than four years, Looking Forward is releasing an e-book, repurposing some of the content presented by several of the podcast's most outstanding guest experts.
The report is available for $9.99 from the podcast's host, Jeff Ostroff. And Zipless launches today. It's a new podcast that explores the luscious, literary and often illicit sounds and stories behind romance novels and audiobooks. In interviews with best-selling romance authors, host Allie Martina explores how romance novels change and reflect women's lives on and off the page. And this podcast is sponsored by Central Talent Booking, helping you transform your podcast guest lineup.
Central Talent Booking delivers top-tier guests, celebrities, influencers, thought leaders and compelling experts to elevate your podcast. There's a link to learn more in the show notes. And that's the latest from our newsletter. To read all the stories and subscribe, we're at podnews.net.