Sounds Profitable
Bryan Barletta
The pace of change the podcast industry is undergoing is staggering. The implications for podcasters, hosting providers, podcast listening app developers, and advertisers and agencies are enormous. And so is the growth potential. Presented as a companion to the weekly newsletter of the same name, our podcast provides you with direct access to our narrated articles, interviews with industry experts, bleeding-edge research, and can't miss industry news recaps. That Sounds Profitable, right? Assumptions and conventional wisdom will be challenged. Easy answers with no proof of efficacy will be exposed. Because the thinking that got podcast advertising close to a billion dollars annually will need to be drastically overhauled to bring in the tens or hundreds of billions of dollars podcast advertising deserves.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Nov 3, 2025 • 7min
Advertisers Jumpstart Holiday Spend, TYT x Noble Mobile, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: the top podcast hosting companies by episode volume, advertisers push holiday spend earlier this year, City Cast recalibrates, how local radio can leverage podcasting, and SiriusXM's Q3 earnings report.Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 31, 2025 • 9min
Measurement Holds Back $1b, Amazon Corporate Downsizing, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: Amazon has laid off some Audible corporate staff, brands are paying more for less efficient ads, Spotify brought video to AppleTV, the trend of business folks hosting B2B podcasts, and China now requires influencers be qualified to talk about certain topics authoritatively. Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 30, 2025 • 7min
Triton Digital's AdBuilder, Vertical YouTube Outearns Horizontal, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: Triton Digital launches AdBuilder AI, YouTube Shorts earn more than longform videos per watch-hour, new report argues top-of-funnel brand awareness influences purchase decisions more than thought, and China now requires influencers be qualified in certain fields before speaking authoritatively on several topics. Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 29, 2025 • 8min
Defining "AI" for Advertising, Acast CEO on Video Podcasting, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: Amazon has laid off some Audible corporate staff, IAB looking to define AI transparency for ads, Acast's CEO on video podcasting, how AI search is changing brand discovery, and Nielsen's summer data on audio listenership.Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 28, 2025 • 6min
Spotify Revamps Apple TV App, Floating Ad Tech Economy, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: ad tech survives on floating cash, Spotify revamps Apple TV app, Oxford Road finds why advertisers are holding back spend, and Netflix's Spotify choices lack comedy.Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 27, 2025 • 7min
C-Suite Podcast Hosts, Ads That Cost More for Less Traffic, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: brands are paying more for ads that do less, the rise of c-suite podcast hosts (and why), creators are seeing brand deals later and later into Q4 than usual, how to harness audio podcast clips well on social media, and YouTube's TV presence might be plateauing. Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 24, 2025 • 11min
NRF Projects High Holiday Spend, Pantheon Media x Spooler, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: content creators are taking over mainstream medai, a blindingly obvious opportunity for podcast revenue growth, how collaboration makes The Hidden Third possible, how Pantheon Media and Spooler came together, and the NRF finds Americans are gearing up to spend a healthy amount this holiday season. Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 23, 2025 • 8min
BBC Sounds' Q3, YouTube Sponsorships are Up, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: YouTube sponsorships are on the rise, BBC Sounds has their Q3 report, Audacy has a new State of Audio, Solar ran ads in a theater chain, and a new report finds e-commerce sites don't see much conversion from ChatGPT referals. Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 22, 2025 • 7min
How YouTube DAI Changes Upfronts, Lessons from SXSW Sydney, & More
Today in the business of podcasting: Adam Bowie on the Spotify Netflix deal, how YouTube's dynamic brand insertion tool could change upfronts in 2026, Netflix's Still Watching report, and 11 lessons for podcasting from SXSW Sydney.Find links to every article covered by heading to the Download section of SoundsProfitable.com, or by clicking here to go directly to today's installment.
Oct 22, 2025 • 7min
A Blindingly Obvious Opportunity for Podcast Revenue Growth
Podcasting's reach has grown quite a bit over the years, but several fruitful demographics still remain untapped. Written and narrated by Tom WebsterEdited by Bryan Barletta and Gavin GaddisAudio editing by Gavin GaddisFind the full article here on Sounds Profitable.
