iHeartMedia, Spotify, SiriusXM and Acast reported year over year revenue growth in their podcast businesses during the fourth quarter of 2023. During their Q4 earnings calls, company executives noted signs of an improving advertising market heading into 2024.
Spotify and Acast, in particular, are expecting their podcast businesses to reach profitability for the first time in 2024. Execs at iHeart, Spotify and Acast told shareholders in fourth quarter earnings calls this month that they were seeing the ad market emerge from the slowdown in 2023, especially in the second half of last year.
“We expect 2024 to be back in growth mode, as we continue to see signs of improvement throughout our business and the broader advertising marketplace,” Rich Bressler, president, COO and CFO of iHeartMedia, said in the earnings call on Thursday.
Podcast revenue continues to grow, despite earlier headwinds
Podcast revenue at iHeart – which is generated from ads sold across its podcast network – was $132 million in Q4 2023, up 17% compared to Q4 2022 (and an increase from $96.6 million in Q4 2021). Full year podcast revenue was up 14% in 2023 year over year.
The company said this growth was driven primarily by increased advertiser demand. Podcasts made up 12% of iHeart’s overall revenue in Q4, up from 10% in the same quarter in 2022. Overall revenue at iHeart was $1 billion, down 5.2% year over year.
While Spotify doesn’t break out podcast revenue from its overall business, CEO Daniel Ek said in an earnings call on Feb. 6 that the company is getting closer to a profitable podcast business (he also said this during a third quarter earnings call in October). Spotify narrowed its loss to about $75 million in Q4 2023, compared to about $291 million in Q4 2022.
“I’m pleased to