A podcasting report released last week by eMarketer suggests advertising is limited but highly effective. Podcast ad revenue is $240 million this year, a 45.5 percent rise from last year, and will reach $435 million in 2012, with 8.8 percent growth.
The low numbers derive from the limited audience, with just over 14 percent of U.S. Internet users downloading podcasts in 2007 according to a Universal McCann report released this month. But that number jumped to 29.5 percent in 2008, which signals a growing audience.
The other good news for podcast publishers is the audience watches the ads. New data from Podtrac and TNS says that unaided awareness for podcast ads is 68 percent, compared with 21 percent for streaming video and 10 percent for TV. “Audiences pay close attention to show content and the embedded ads within them,” said Doug Keith, president of Future Research Consulting. “The high unaided ad recall figures are the result of a less cluttered environment.”
Podcast publishers seek premium prices, but eMarketer says, “Some publishers are still trying to figure out how to price. Podcast advertising networks simplify this, but it can still be tough to gauge ad effectiveness.”
“Podcasting is, by its nature, a niche medium, and this is not likely to change,” said Paul Verna, senior analyst at eMarketer. “But podcasting delivers a level of end-user engagement that is rare in today’s multi-format world.”
“Mufasa: The Lion King” and “Sonic 3” Rule Box Office For 1st Weekend Of 2025
The Walt Disney Co.'s "Mufasa: The Lion King" claimed the No. 1 spot on the North American box office charts over the first weekend of 2025.
The photorealistic "Lion King" prequel earned $23.8 million in its third weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Paramount's "Sonic the Hedgehog 3," which has dominated the past two weekends, wasn't far behind.
"Sonic 3" stayed close with a 3-day estimate of $21.2 million, bringing its total domestic earnings to $187.5 million and helping the overall franchise cross $1 billion worldwide. "Mufasa's" running total is slightly less, with $169.2 million.
In third place, Focus Features' "Nosferatu" remake defied the fate of so many of its genre predecessors and fell only 39% in its second weekend. Horror films typically fall sharply after the first weekend and anything less than a 50% decline is notable. "Nosferatu," which added 140 screens, claimed $13.2 million in ticket sales, bringing its running total to $69.4 million since its Christmas debut. The film, directed by Robert Eggers, already surpassed its reported production budget of $50 million, though that figure does not account for marketing and promotion expenses).
No new wide releases opened this weekend, leaving the box office top 10 once again to holdovers from previous weeks. Several have been in theaters since Thanksgiving. One of those, "Moana 2," claimed the No. 4 spot for Disney in its sixth weekend in theaters. The animated sequel earned another $12.4 million, bumping its global total to $960.5 million.
The Bob Dylan biopic "A Complete Unknown," dipped only slightly in its second weekend, bringing in $8.1 million. With $41.7 million total, it's Searchlight's highest grossing film since Disney acquired the company in... Read More