It wasn’t too long ago people were skeptical about the future of podcasting – it is, after all, easy to be a skeptic about a medium so new (rappers are still wondering when they’re supposed fad will pass). But Wizzard Media has 70 million reasons to disagree, just last month.
Podcast Downloads Set New Record
Just as podcasting was gaining steam in the public realm, Google bought YouTube and everybody, especially the media, went ape for online video-sharing. Goodbye old hype, hello new hype.
Six months later, podcast distributor Wizzard announces a record-breaker: 70 million podcast downloads in March. That number concludes a record quarter, when more than 180 million podcasts were downloaded, over half of all Wizzard’s downloads for the whole of 2006.
Or, if you like to play with big numbers, about 2.3 million downloads daily.
“The audience for audio and video podcasts is growing substantially as more consumers become aware of the vast array of high quality, free content available, not only to iPod owners, but to anyone with a computer or MP3 player”, said Chris Spencer, CEO of Wizzard.
“The radio and TV style internet shows we distribute for our publishers, consistently make up over one-third of the top 25 shows across all podcasting categories in iTunes.
“This is a result of a user generated content hungry audience who appreciates the mobility and time shifting capabilities of podcasting.”
The company says it recently refocused efforts to monetize the podcast medium, mostly via advertising and sponsorships. Part of that effort involved bringing Time, Inc. ad vet Jim Else to lead its advertising sales force.
Podcast advocate Paul Colligan really didn’t need numbers like that to reinforce his enthusiasm. Though the medium was dealt a blow from Sirius radio recently, Colligan was still defiant.
“The future of media, simply, is on demand and anyone who doesn’t provide that opportunity is as vital to our future as is black and white television,” Colligan said on his blog.
