An overview of the Podcasting market, including market projections, audience growth strategy, underlying economics and competitive ecosystem. With input from Gimlet Media
3. 3
Executive Summary
• Digitization of media continues; news and talk radio beginning to be
disrupted by emergence of podcasting
• Podcasting market is estimated at ~$90M in 2014, and is expected to
grow at ~24% annual growth through 2020
• Individual podcasts can succeed through a combination of factors
which have been leveraged by popular podcasts
• Podcasting economics potentially appealing
• Competitive landscape shows that content producers likely to see the
highest margins while aggregators and distributors see highest volume
Investment opportunities
Content: Invest in producers w/ top talent
Aggreg/Distributors: Invest in Distribution networks
4. 4
Digitization is causing significant changes across media
landscape
Traditional Digital
Shift from in-store
pickup to on-
demand mail-in and
streaming model
Video
Shift from real-time
TV viewing to on-
demand TV, and
streamed
productions
Television
Shift from real-time
radio and physical
CDs to digital
downloads and
streaming
Music
5. 5
Disruption now impacting talk/news/public radio, where
podcasts emerging as a new format
Traditional Digital
Shift from real-time
talk radio to on-
demand download
and streaming model
News/Talk
Radio
6. 6
Podcast searches have increased over time, with top
players like Serial fueling recent spikes
0
20
40
60
80
100
Indexed google searches within "Radio" category
Radiolab
Podcast
Serial
2010-01
2010-07
2011-01
2011-07
2012-01
2012-07
2013-01
2013-07
2014-01
2014-07
2015-01
Invisibilia
Planet Money
Source: Google Analytics
8. 8
Podcasting has grown by ~25% over the last 5 years;
growth expected to stay fairly consistent into 2020
0
100
200
300
400
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4%
Estimated podcasting market spend ($M)
2010
43
2011
53
2012
58
2013
75
2014
90
2015
133
2016
167
2017
207
2018
256
2019
318
2020
395
25%
10-15E
CAGR
24%
15E-20E
CAGR
24 2422 11 29 19 48 25 24 24
Y/y % market
growth
11 25 2713 13 15 18 20 21 22 24Average CPM ($)
26 91 10232 37 43 51 59 66 74 82
Digital media
spend ($B)
Share of digital media spend
Podcasting spend
Share of digital
media spend
Note: CPM price change estimated by applying change in Cost per Loyal User Index (measures cost of acquiring a loyal user for brands who
actively market their apps) to 2015 CPM cost
Sources: CPM: Multiple press sources; Pricing change: Fiksu and Interactive Advertising Bureau
PRELIMINARY
9. 9
Listeners have grown by ~8% over the last 5 years,
while listens have grown by ~11%
Notes: Listeners: Using average number of weekly listens per Edison Research, assumed that: existing users listened to 100% of those listens;
new users listened to 50% of those listens; older users listen to 25% Average listens: Assuming listen 4 weeks per month; 10 months per year
Source: Edison Research; US Census
NUMBER OF PODCAST
LISTENERS
AVERAGE LISTENS PER
LISTENER TOTAL PODCAST LISTENS
Assumed for
2010-13
PRELIMINARY
10. 10
Under select scenarios, podcasting space could stay
relatively flat, or hit over 40% US penetration
0
200
400
600
800
1,000
Estimated podcasting market spend ($M)
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
25%
10-15E
CAGR
48%
24%
2%
15-20E
CAGR
24 2422 11 29 19 48 25 24 24
Y/y % market
growth
11 25 2713 13 15 18 20 21 22 24Average CPM ($)
0.17 0.35 0.390.17 0.16 0.17 0.18 0.23 0.25 0.28 0.31
Share of digital
media spend
Base
High
Low
Note: CPM price change estimated by applying change in Cost per Loyal User Index (measures cost of acquiring a loyal user for brands who
actively market their apps) to 2015 CPM cost
Sources: CPM: Multiple press sources; Pricing change: Fiksu and Interactive Advertising Bureau
Base
12. 12
Podcasts have acquired listeners through several routes
Personality • Podcasts can grab initial share of viewers with well-known
radio personalities or celebrity hosts
Cross-
promotion
• Featured segment of newer podcasts on popular podcasts
has helped drive listeners to the new podcast
Social
Media /
Buzz
• Social media and buzz playing a more significant role in
driving podcast growth
Traditional
Media
• Discussion of podcasts in more mainstream media outlets
draws in newer listeners who may not have listened to
podcasts before
List
positioning
• Presence in the iTunes top 10 list has been significant factor
in building listener base
13. 13
Acquisition routes of recently successful podcasts
Fastest
podcast
in iTunes
history to
reach 5M
listens
Launched
in Top 5
of iTunes,
remains
in top 40
Launched in fall
of ‘14, about a
a journalistic
investigation
into a Baltimore
murder
Launched in
Summer ‘14,
the story of
launching a
podcasting
company
Note: Article mentions determine through Factiva searches on: “Serial & podcast & Koenig” and “Startup & podcast & Blumberg”
Source: Factiva
PERSONALITY
CROSS-
PROMOTION
SOCIAL
MEDIA / BUZZ
TRADITIONAL
MEDIA
LIST
POSITIONING
• Hosted
by Sarah
Koenig,
producer
on This
American
Life (TAL)
• At least
5 Serial
offshoot
podcasts
• 185K
twitter
followers
• 387
articles
final 3 mos
of 2014
• Parody of
Serial on
SNL
• 24 article
mentions
in final 3
months of
2014
• Hosted
by Alex
Blumberg,
15-year
public
radio
veteran
• Debuted
10/3/14
on TAL, a
popular
podcast
• #2 in
iTunes
Top 10
in May
• Hovers
around
iTunes
Top 20
• 21.3K
followers
on twitter
• Featured
on TAL
segment
on
9/5/14
= Major contributor
Impact on audience acquisition
= Moderate contributor = Minor contributor
14. 14
Over time, public radio affiliated podcasts have retained
a strong presence in iTunes Top 10
1
SPONTANEANATION
with Paul F. Tompkins
This American Life This American Life This American Life This American Life This American Life
2 ESPN: Bill Don't Lie Radiolab from WNYC
NPR Programs: Wait
Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Podcast
David Guetta -
Nothing But The Beat,
The Movie
Stuff You Should
Know
Alvin And The
Chipmunks: The
Squeakquel "Making a
Scene" Featurette
3 This American Life
NPR: TED Radio Hour
Podcast
WNYC's Radiolab
NPR Programs: Wait
Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Podcast
Freakonomics Radio Freakonomics Radio
4 Serial
NPR Programs: Wait
Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Podcast
NPR: TED Radio Hour
Podcast
WNYC's Radiolab The Moth Podcast
Stuff You Should
Know
5 Radiolab from WNYC The Moth Podcast
Stuff You Should
Know
Freakonomics Radio
The Adam Carolla
Show
NPR: Wait Wait...
Don't Tell Me! Podcast
6 TED Radio Hour
Welcome to Night
Vale
The Moth Podcast
NPR Programs: Fresh
Air Podcast
WNYC's Radiolab
NPR: Fresh Air
Podcast
7
Psychobabble with
Tyler Oakley & Korey
Kuhl
Freakonomics Radio
StarTalk Radio Show
by Neil deGrasse
Tyson » Shows
Stuff You Should
Know
NPR: Wait Wait...
Don't Tell Me! Podcast
The Ricky Gervais
Podcast
8 Invisibilia
Stuff You Should
Know
Norm Macdonald Live
Alvin and the
Chipmunks:
Chipwrecked: Behind-
the-Scenes
NPR: Fresh Air
Podcast
Real Time with Bill
Maher
9 Fresh Air
NPR Programs: Fresh
Air Podcast
Here's The Thing NPR: Car Talk Podcast ESPN: 1st and 10 WNYC's Radiolab
10
Wait Wait... Don't Tell
Me!
The Nerdist
The Joe Rogan
Experience
The Adam Carolla
Show
Happy Tree Friends
MacBreak Weekly
Video (large)
RANK APRIL 2015 APRIL 2014 APRIL 2013 APRIL 2012 APRIL 2011 APRIL 2010
= Public radio/ affiliated = Entertainment = Educational
Note: Top 10 for the first of April, each year
Source: http://www.itunescharts.net/us/charts/podcasts/
16. 16
0
20
40
60
80
$100
Cost per thousand
G
eneral
display
2
M
obile
3
Prem
ium
display
10
YouTube
15
Video
25
Podcast
(Avg)
30
Serial
40
G
im
let
100
0
5
10
15
$20
Estimated podcast CPM*
2010
11
2011
13
2012
13
2013
15
2014
18
2015
20
13%
10-15
CAGR
Podcast pricing, which is significantly higher than other
media, has stayed fairly steady
PODCASTING ADS ARE MUCH
PRICIER THAN OTHER MEDIA…
…AND CPM LIKELY TO HAVE
INCREASED OVER TIME
“Podcast ads generate ridiculous levels of engagement. Internal Midroll surveys
of 300K listeners found that 63% of people bought something a host had
peddled on his show. Because of that leverage, Midroll "charges a lot, actually" for
podcast ads.” - Fast Company
Note: *Podcast CPM change from 2010-2015 estimated using 2015 average ($20 CPM), then using Fiksu Cost per Loyal User index data (Cost
per Loyal User Index measures the cost of acquiring a loyal user for brands who actively market their apps) to estimate backward
Sources: MonetizePros, The Globe and Mail, Slate, Fast Company, Fiksu
17. 17
Estimation of performance for “Serial” podcast shows
potentially attractive margin opportunity
0
200
400
$600K
Serial podcast economics
Revenue
585
Ad sales
comission
-176
Radio
Personality
Salaries
-150
Radio Staff
Salaries
-75
Cost of data
hosting/
transfer
-48
Other
Expenses
-50
Margin
87
Note: Revenue: assumes 12 podcasts at 1.5M downloads at $33 CPM per listen; Ad sales commission: assumes 30% of gross revenues;
Salaries: assumes 2 radio personalities and 3 radio staffers worked 50% of the year on ‘Serial’ podcast at $150K and $50K salaries,
respectively; Cost of data hosting: assumes $4K monthly cost of data transfer
Sources: http://www.business2community.com/content-marketing/serial-effect-podcasting-business-profitable-strategy-01124873;
http://glog.glennf.com/blog/2014/11/23/show-me-the-numbers-serials-data-transfer-costs
ILLUSTRATIVE
~15%
estimated
margin for
Serial
Does not include
additional
donations solicited
during Season 1
19. 19
Competitive for talent; Quality
will win
Commoditized barring
significant innovation
Ownership to remain with top players,
though startups cropping up to offer
enhanced audio
Market expected to remain fragmented over time, with
key players emerging based on talent
Content Aggregation Distribution
iTunes
Beyond Pod
Doggc
atcherPlayer
FM
PRX affiliate
Soundworks
APM
Proprietary
content
3rd
party
content
Pure ad
platforms
Instacast
Hybrid content network
Distribution network
= Higher margin
= Moderate margin
= Lower margin
Projected margin
Sources: Company websites
21. 21
Select Scenarios – Methodology
Drivers • Podcasting remains a
fairly niche form of media
with 1-2 breakouts ala
Serial, but little
broadening of usage
• Online and terrestrial
radio remain dominant
• CPM drops in line with
average ad drops for online
radio ads
• Podcasting continues
growing inline with
historical growth, with a
boost from breakout hits
like Serial widening the
broader market
• Prices increase at
slower pace, as proven
effectiveness of podcast
advertising drives CPM
higher, but radio still seen
as better investment
• Driven by rapid digital
audio adoption in cars
and significant mobile user
consumption of podcasts,
radio personalities shift
to podcasts as well,
yielding network effects
fuel further growth
• Migration of users and
talent and proven
effectiveness of podcast
advertising continues
driving CPM higher
Projected
Listener
penetration
(2020)
20%
(based on listener growth of 4%,
which follows online radio listener
growth)
28%
(based on listener growth of 11%,
which follows 5-yr historical
podcast listener growth)
41%
(based on listener growth of 20%,
which follows recent, Serial-fueled
listener growth)
Projected
change in
Listens per
month
2.7%
(based on slow listener growth of
25% of ’14-15 listen growth)
5.3%
(based on slower listener growth of
50% of ’14-15 listen growth)
10.7%
(based on rapid ’14-15 listen
growth)
Projected
change in
CPM
-5.2%
(based on 50% of online radio CPM
annual change)
6%
(based on slower pricing growth of
50% of historical)
12.1%
(based on historical pricing growth)
LOW GROWTH BASELINE GROWTH HIGH GROWTH