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July 23, 2013

iTunes Surpasses One Billion Podcast Subscriptions

By Kayvon Ghoreshi, TMCnet Contributing Writer

This week, the iTunes Store has exceeded one billion podcast subscriptions. Apple (News - Alert) said these podcasts are spread across 250,000 unique podcasts available in more than 100 languages, and that more than eight million episodes have been published to date.



The success of podcasts on Apple’s platform is significant and shows Apple’s support of the medium. Unlike other items on the iTunes Store such as apps or music, Apple doesn’t make any money from podcasts. However, it is still willing to support the platform with a dedicated section in the store, the Podcasts app, Apple TV support, and even having GarageBand software offer users the tools for creating their own podcasts.

Among the incredibly successful podcasts on the iTunes Store, NPR (News - Alert) has consistently been one of the top downloaded, and now sees more than 25 million downloads every month. “We’ve been podcasting basically since the iPod came out in 2001,” Zach Brand, vice president of digital media for NPR, told Macworld. “Obviously, podcasting is a very natural fit for our audio focus.”

Image via Apple

The NPR audience has also been very supportive of the audio content. “Our audience loves listening to our content through podcasting, and we love delivering it. We like to engage our audience on whatever platform they choose to listen,” Brand said.

According to Brand, the majority of NPR subscribers are through iTunes and use Apple products to listen to the podcast whether it is directly through iTunes or on an iOS device.

“We have a very healthy partnership with Apple,” Brand said. “They come out with great products and we have great content, and they work great together.”

Despite the easy access of content like video, podcasts continue to be a healthy medium. Many websites and blogs have added or already had a podcast to supplement their written content. Brand said, “Podcasting is more than a decade old, and we’re still seeing growth.”




Edited by Rachel Ramsey
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