eMarketer says a number of factors are driving growth of the podcast user base:

• Greater ease of consumption for podcast content
• Growing awareness of podcasting
• Terrestrial radio’s use and promotion of podcasting
• Increased penetration of portable players
• The evolution of smart phones and proliferation of affordable mobile data plans

I wonder if podcasts will even be called podcasts in two years time.

Check the full report here.

More than 8 million people in the UK listen to web-based radio services every week and nearly 2 million download podcasts on a weekly basis, according to a survey that suggests internet radio has hit the mainstream.

These are interesting figures but:

“This survey is very much a toe in the water,” said the Rajar research director, Paul Kennedy.

More at the Guardian.

Just a heads up on a great new episode from Spiral Training. The first show examined the power and peril of using Powerpoint, and today’s show discusses networking in the Facebook era.

Audemos support Spiral Training in delivering their podcasts.

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We just got some download figures back from the Discovery Channel and they are pretty pleasing. It seems the podcast has been downloaded 30,000 times - although we know that doesn’t mean it’s been listened to that many times.

And I have to agree.  I’ve been banging on about content is king and delivery being transparent for a long time.  He says:

“I am not a podcaster. I’m a journalist, a pundit, an entertainer. I create audio and video shows and distribute them over the Internet. Maybe that’s YouTube, maybe it’s my own web site, maybe it’s via an RSS feed. The medium isn’t the message - the message is the message. It’s not a podcast, it’s a show, and I plan to call my shows by the right name from now on.”

It’s a great post, so go read it.

The guys behind Diggnation, The totally rad show and other tech/geek video podcasts have raised another $8 million, on top of the $1 million raised last year.

I love Diggnation, even though I wouldn’t class myself as a proper geek. It’s well produced, in fact it’s better than a lot of traditional content on TV. Here’s why they called the company Revision3:

The company calls itself Revision3 because they think that television is moving into its third stage:

• Revision 1: Cable, adding general interest channels, catering to “most common denominator.”
• Revision 2: PC-based Internet video, indy films, no business model, no loyalty, no audience
• Revision 3: TV and Internet converge. iPods, Tivo, mobile, broadband enable mass, loyal audience to shift to ondemand, niche content. Advertising follows them.

Via Podcasting News

“Long gone are the days when search engine optimization (SEO) was enough to drive a flood of traffic to your website. While most old school marketers are still trying to figure out the pesky nuances of the latest “Google dance”, younger and savvier webmasters understand that we’re now serving two masters: SEO has become the evil twin - and SMO (social media optimization), his shiny happy sibling.”

Found at copywriting.com

The Diffusion Group reports that, based on their latest research, 11% of adult broadband users (some 12 million US consumers) listen to podcasts at least once per month. They also predict that the podcast audience will more than double in the next five years, to 24% of broadband users (38.5 million Americans) by 2012.

The story goes on to say that the expansion is being held back by 2 key factors, perception of complexity and lack of awareness of the wealth of content available.

Here’s some other key findings:

• Among those that listen to podcasts at least once per month, 68% use a portable device while 49% listen to them on a PC (an interesting insight given that many define podcasting as only a portable medium);
• On average, users listen to 5.4 podcasts per month on a portable device and 4.7 on a PC;
• On average, those who subscribe to podcast services are signed up for 4.1 different feeds; and
• 70% of users rely on iTunes to access podcasts.

Get the rest of the story at podcastingnews.com

Apple have just updated their Pro website with some nice articles on integrating sound to create more dynamic journalism.

There’s loads of technical advice and info on essential equipment and some stories from journalists who use sound in some pretty cool ways.

“Audio can really make you feel like you’re there” says Nhat Meyer, a photojournalist who creates audio slideshows (a mixture of still photos with ambient sound and audio interviews) for the award-winning Mercury News in San Jose, California. “It can be as simple as natural or ambient sound, or it can be informative, through interviews. It definitely provides a multidimensional view of an event.” A great example is Meyer’s audio slideshow depicting the record-breaking 715th home run by the San Francisco Giants Barry Bonds. “You can hear the crack of the bat” exclaims Meyer.

If you’d like to talk to Audemos about creating your own sound enhanced media, email or call for a free consultation.

Whilst Evan Williams has been busy Twittering, his other project Odeo has been up for sale. Today, Evan’s much loved podcasting site Odeo was acquired by SonicMountain.

A critical aspect of the transaction was the commitment by SonicMountain to retain the integrity and spirit of the Odeo community, says Evan Williams, CEO of Obvious Corporation. During the selection and due-diligence process it was important that the buyer be committed to Odeo’s growth and improvement.

Evan Williams will be acting in an advisory capacity during and post transition.

Podcasting News