¶ Intro / Opening
This is the download from Sounds Profitable, your daily source for the essential news in the business of podcasting. I'm Gavin Gaddis.
¶ Key Podcast Industry Developments
Here's what you need to know for today, Monday, March 30th. First up, podcast movement evolutions at South by Southwest 2026 sessions are now live. Video recordings of presentations from this year's podcast movement evolutions are now available on the official Podcast Movement YouTube channel. The playlist features twenty five videos spanning from ten minute discovery sessions to full fifty minute panels.
Up next, Otonel and the Asae Shimbun Company jointly release results of their survey on podcast usage in Japan. Otonal and the Asahi Shimbung Company have released their annual survey of podcast usage in Japan. Conducted december fifth through sixth, twenty twenty five, the survey targeted ten thousand respondents aged fifteen to sixty nine. Key findings include one percentage point increase in national podcast consumption, that's 18.2% overall from 2024.
When looking at specific demographics, the fifteen to nineteen year olds reached a forty point five percent usage rate. That's a six point four percentage point increase year over year. In addition, twenty to twenty nine year olds reached twenty eight point eight percent usage, representing a one point five percentage point year over year increase. In comparison to respondents who don't consume podcasts, those who partake have a higher ratio of corporate decision makers.
By comparison to seven major forms of media podcasting's ratio, corporate decision makers rank second place behind only newspaper readers. Next up, HLS Video and Podcast. Who's doing what? John Spurlock has published a new ongoing research project on LiveWire Labs, keeping tabs on HTTP live streaming, HLS, video podcasting. As of his March 29th update, Spurlock identified 78 podcasts. With HLS video on Apple Podcasts totaling one thousand seventy episodes.
The piece lists each podcast host with HLS video detailing Apple Podcasts and RSS support, plus video formats, resolutions, codecs, and bit rates. Since the project specifically is looking at media files, hosting platforms that have promised HLS support in the future do not appear on the list.
Next up, what marketers should take away from IAB New Fronts 2026? Ad results media reports back from Newfronts 2026 with key takeaways, including the notion that the modern advertising industry has shifted to becoming always on.
New fronts being shifted to take place earlier in the year reflects a structural change to how ads are bought and sold. Old school tent pole buys tied to traditional upfronts are fading as connected TV, CTV, and creator-led media become ongoing investments, not one-offs. Finally, Versant pursues a deal for Vox Media's podcast business.
Versant, parent company of CNBC and MS Now, is reportedly pursuing Vox Media's podcast network. The deal would feed into CEO Mark Lazarus' stated goal of diversifying Versant's revenue. So roughly one third comes from sources other than pay T V in the next three to five years. Fox Media's portfolio would also fit in with the audio efforts of Versant's existing cable networks podcasting arms.
including MS Now's Video Podcast Productions and recent deal to broadcast crooked media clip compilations in a weekly 9 p.m. Eastern Standard Time Saturday slot.
¶ Brief Industry News Round-up
As for the rest of the news, Pod News Report Soundstack has recertified as IAB Podcast Measurement Guidelines version two point two compliance. Jasmine Enberg and Kaya Uriev at Scalable cover a reckoning for podcasting, as factors like top shows booking big ticket guests lead to potentially overshadowed low to mid tier productions. This includes a higher impact on women in minority hosted podcasts.
Triton Digital has posted a Canada podcast ranker for february twenty twenty six, with the top six shows holding steady from January. Nova Entertainment has signed fast growing self development podcast Do You Effing Mind? Keeping my clean rating here to the Nova Podcast Network, joining other recent additions like Relatables and Two Broke Chicks. ACAST has a write-up of an advertising week Europe session featuring Josh Woodhouse, Managing Director of ACAST UK and Ireland, Gemma Abrahams.
lead brand and partnership manager at British Airways Holidays, and Wayne Davison, CRO at Little Dot Studios, discussing how brands and creators make the most of podcasting in twenty twenty six. Pave Studios True Crime brand Crime House has announced weekly video episodes are coming for two existing audio franchises, Murder True Crime Stories and Conspiracy Theories, Cult and Crimes.
These join the newly announced series America's Most Infamous Crimes in Pave Studios New Video Expansion. And finally, the Podcast Academy has elected a new board of governors and has updated the full leadership page on their website so you can see who's there.
As usual, you can find links to everything I just talked about by clicking the one link in your show notes, which will take you to soundsprofitable.com's post for today's episode. You can also subscribe to get the newsletter version of the download while you're there. Today's episode was written by myself and produced by myself, Brian Barletta, Molly Demilier, and Tom Webster. For Sounds Profitable, I'm Gavin Gaddis, and I'll see you tomorrow.