PodMov Daily: Wednesday, January 29

Episode 131: Your Midweek Update

Neil Young on The Vergecast: Audio's Missing Pieces

Five years ago musician Neil Young and tech executive Phil Baker released Pono, a high-res music player designed to fix quality issues found in MP3 players and software. Now, “Young believes the tech industry has still not advanced enough for consumers to easily listen to high-resolution audio,” writes Andrew Marino of The Verge.

On a recent episode of The Vergecast, Young shared his pointed grievances with Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel. “True audio dimension is so deep, and there’s so much data there if you want to capture it all,” Young said, lamenting the use of MacBooks for recording.

A new book by Young and Baker, To Feel the Music: A Songwriter’s Mission To Save High-Quality Audio, tells Pono’s origin story and advises the tech industry to reevaluate. Though it’s disparaging of popular standards and sure to polarize, Young’s perspective is passionate in message.

PM's Weekly Community Recap: Registration & Education

This week’s PM community update announces additional sessions for each track at Evolutions, including Sharon Taylor’s  “Privacy and Podcasting” and Todd Cochrane’s “RSS in the Modern Era.”

Now’s the time to register — rates increase tonight at midnight, and passes are going fast. There are fewer than 10 creator passes and fewer than 40 industry passes available.

Check out the full schedule, speakers, and more on the Evolutions app — join us for a webinar walkthrough tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. ET/noon PT.

Vox Media Bets on $20m Podcast Revenue in 2020

Vox Media is aiming for 2020 podcast revenue in the neighborhood of $20 million. Without disclosing exact figures, Vox Media Studios president Marty Moe told Digiday’s Kayleigh Barber that ‘the goal is to double the eight-figure revenue business.’

“In all, Vox Media worked with over 100 different podcast advertisers last year and [Moe] said he expects this number to grow this year, although the focus is on expanding hit podcasts,” Barber writes. Across its 14 brands the network currently has 200 shows, including Today, Explained and The Ezra Klein Show.

Moe “expects this year to be the first in which the brand studio produces the majority of its served ads” as the team expands offerings. Hiring specifically to hone “the various types of advertising that are now available” has become standard to stay ahead.

Happy Wednesday, readers, and thank you for your replies. When asked “What’s your all-time favorite part about making a podcast?” many of you mentioned hearing from fans. Just taking a moment to acknowledge that listener love.

Cheers,
Team PM

Here's what else is going on:

• Steering wheel: Your Daily Drive, a new playlist feature from Spotify, has launched in Australia. It “draws from a range of podcasts and on-demand content” designed for commuting, in a move seen as a challenge to FM radio’s in-car listening model.
• High frequency: The marketing and e-commerce firm BRS Media has released its ranking of 2019’s top .FM sites and brands. The ‘Podcast Apps, Podcast Hosting and Podcasters’ category saw “overwhelming growth,” with Castbox.fm in the top spot.
• Bonus round: Peter Houston of The Publisher Podcast Awards, this March in London, reveals the recipe for a distinguished, top-performing news show. It’s key to “give [listeners] something you don’t give them online or in the paper — provide added value.”

• Spread out: The podcasting platform Spreaker has announced partnership with the social discovery tool Podchaser, adding a dedicated distribution CMS page for syndication. Claiming a podcast will let users engage with an activity feed.