Spotify unveiled its ‘Spotify Audience Network’ at its Stream On event in February, describing it as a “first of its kind podcast advertising marketplace where advertisers can buy across a network of original, exclusive and independent podcasts” both on and off Spotify.
Now it is expanding beyond its initial launch in the US to new countries: the UK, Australia and Canada. So far, the network is selling ads within podcasts made by Spotify’s in-house studios – The Ringer, Gimlet, Parcast and Spotify Studios itself – as well as through various shows from external producers.
The company says that nearly 60% of its podcast advertisers in the US are already using the network.
This is part of the bigger race to ramp up the money being made by podcasts, whether it be through ads (see also: Amazon Music’s recent acquisition of Art19) or subscriptions (with Spotify and Apple both recently making their premium podcasts moves).
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