As the podcasting world ventures into 2024, industry leaders anticipate a resurgence following a period of retraction, foreseeing a surge bolstered by innovative technological integration and a renewed focus on global outreach. Despite setbacks witnessed in the past year, including Spotify’s downsizing efforts, Jen Sargent, CEO of Wondery, and Conal Byrne, CEO of iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group, remain resolutely optimistic about the sector’s potential, especially on an international scale.
Acknowledging the industry’s recent ebb, both Sargent and Byrne envision a transformative phase, emphasizing the sector’s untapped prospects. They anticipate manifold revenue streams for content creators while leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and video platforms to amplify audience engagement.
Although the broader advertising landscape weathered challenges, the duo anticipates an upswing in podcast advertising, fueled by burgeoning demand. Byrne highlights AI’s pivotal role in the medium’s globalization, emphasizing its potential to translate podcasts into diverse languages. iHeartMedia, with creator consent, intends to employ AI to translate, transcribe, and voice its podcast archives, including its popular series, How, into multiple languages. While acknowledging current scalability limitations, Byrne hints at imminent testing before a robust AI implementation scheduled for the latter half of 2024.
“It’s not merely about reaching audiences in their preferred languages but fostering viable businesses in those regions,” Byrne elucidated, underscoring the broader impact of language accessibility for creators.
Simultaneously, Wondery, under Amazon’s wing, charts a course for global expansion, capitalizing on burgeoning listenership in Latin America and Europe. Collaborating with regional talents in Germany, Mexico, Brazil, and beyond, Wondery endeavours to create localized content while adapting hit shows like Business Wars and Killer Psyche for diverse cultural audiences.
The convergence of technology, creativity, and cross-cultural partnerships signals an exciting phase for podcasting in 2024. As the industry primes itself for an era characterized by innovation and inclusivity, the visionaries at the helm foresee a paradigm shift, inviting a diverse array of voices and narratives onto the global stage.
For more info : https://m.imdb.com/news/ni64376877/?ref_=nwc_art_plk
