Podcasts have become a regular and trusted source of news, entertainment, and information for millions of listeners around the world. And user behaviour on Spotify globally supports this trend. In fact, 25% of our users now listen to podcasts on our platform,¹ while listenership continues to grow at triple-digit rates year over year.² While we’ve seen steady growth in podcasts globally, they’ve exploded in popularity for U.K. listeners in particular. There was an 11.4% increase in U.K. podcast listeners across all platforms between 2019 and 2020.³ This number is expected to grow another 10% in 2021.⁴

That’s why we’re excited to announce that Spotify Podcast Ads are now available in the U.K., allowing advertisers to reach valuable and engaged audiences across many of Spotify’s Original and Exclusive podcast titles. Historically, a lack of clear and equivalent measurement has prevented podcast advertising from truly taking off like its digital media counterparts. This is because podcast content is still largely downloaded via RSS feeds – which limits the advertiser’s visibility into whether their ad was heard. But the shift in consumption from downloads to streaming has opened the door for advances in data-driven podcast advertising. And at Spotify, we’re moving beyond these constraints to reimagine what's possible for this uniquely powerful and intimate medium.

Spotify Podcast Ads offer the intimacy of traditional podcast ads, with the precision and transparency of modern-day digital marketing. Powered by Streaming Ad Insertion (SAI), Spotify Podcast Ads deliver and report on confirmed ad impressions, rather than downloads, audience insights, and creative performance. This is a major step change for podcasts. With this new level of digital insight, advertisers are equipped to make even more data-driven decisions for their podcast campaigns.

Rak Patel, Head of UK & Pan-EMEA Sales at Spotify, commented on the launch: “The popularity of podcasts is rising exponentially in the UK and as a relatively untapped medium for advertisers they offer so much potential for brands to reach diverse audiences in new and engaging ways. Unlike some digital media channels, podcasts are intimate, they are trusted, they reach people in a very direct and personal way. With Spotify Podcast Ads we aim to take podcast advertising to the next level, offering brands unique insights into their audiences and creative solutions that can truly capture consumer attention. We’re really excited about what’s to come.”

Spotify Podcast Ads are available across our most popular Original and Exclusive content in the U.K. – including popular titles like “Sorted With The Dyers,” “The Receipts,” “JaackMate’s Happy Hour,” as well as global shows like “The Joe Rogan Experience.” Advertisers can purchase Spotify Podcast Ads on a title-by-title basis – running their creative across preroll or midroll ad placements within the show’s episodes. Select hosts across these shows, as well as a network of professional voice talent, can also team up with advertisers to help bring their podcast creative to life on Spotify.

BT Sport was the first advertiser to take advantage of the new offering in the U.K., launching adverts across the Joe Rogan Experience from Monday, Jan. 18.

This is just the beginning. Stay tuned as we continue to launch in more markets and release exciting new, innovative features in the near future.