Podcast Statistics: Q2 2021

The Q'd Up Podcast on Podcasting

Having crossed the halfway point of 2021, companies are beginning to release their second-quarter financials and show downloads are more established. These podcast stats give us some unique insights into how the business is performing and what moves we might see in the coming months.

On this week’s episode of the Q’d Up Podcast on Podcasting, John Luckenbaugh and Matthew Stevens take a closer look at Edison Research’s Share of Ear study, how many new podcasts have been started in 2021, Spotify’s earnings report, podcast advertising, and Apple Podcast subscriptions.

Listen to John and Matt discuss the latest podcasts statistics:

Edison Research’s Share of Ear study (2:39)

Edison Research ran a study, looking at what types of audio people spend their time listening to. Though AM/FM radio leads the pack, online and streaming audio stacks up well against the old format.

Podcast statistics: New podcasts (9:33)

Coming out of the pandemic, many feared the meteoric rise we saw for podcasting would deflate just as quickly. As it turns out, that’s not a problem at all with the first half of 2021 seeing more podcasts started than all of 2019 and on par to nearly match 2020’s million-plus new shows.

Podcast stats: BBC Sounds (16:18)

The BBC has been investing in its podcasting lineup and seeing quite the return. BBC Sounds reports it had an audience of 3.7 million users with a peak of 3.9 million show up a week between April-June.

Bernstein says podcasting is a “slowing market” (17:47)

When reflecting on Spotify’s investment into podcasting, investment firm Bernstein called the medium a “slowing market” causing Spotify’s stock to take a hard dip. However, it’s not quite that simple. Matt and John pick apart Bernstein’s take and correct some issues with their podcast stats.

Spotify Earnings (20:47)

Spotify recently released their second-quarter earnings numbers, giving us a peak behind how the company is actually performing and some other unique insights. John and Matt talk about how rising subscription numbers point to podcasting’s continuing boom.

Podcasts are the best place for ads (23:46)

Podsights’ latest quarterly analysis continues to prove podcasting’s worth in the ad market. Listeners are more likely to buy after hearing a podcast ad, giving a massive return on investment. But podcast ads also work for service industries, earning a significantly higher website conversion rate than Google, Facebook, Tik Tok, or Twitter. But what does this mean for podcasters right now and over the next few years? Matt and John have some answers

Apple Podcasts subscriptions (35:24)

Apple Podcasts recently opened up its subscription service, allowing podcasters to make their shows subscription-based. With the service finally launching, a surprising number of podcasts took Apple up on their offer. John and Matt discuss if it’s still a good deal for podcasters or if they should stay away.

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Links from the show:

Inside Radio - Edison Research Share of Ear

RainNews - In mid-year 2021, already more new podcasts than in all of 2019

BBC - Listeners were obsessed with Line of Duty, football and festival music mixes on BBC Sounds this quarter

Billboard - Spotify stock drops as analysts warn company must prove podcast strategy

RainNews - Spotify Q2 earnings: Users and revenue up slightly; stock down harshly

Inside Radio - Podsights: Podcast listeners in Q2 were twice as likely to buy products after hearing an ad

PodNews - Paid subscription Apple Podcast channels