Flashbacks of the 2022 podcast industry

by | Dec 20, 2022 | 0 comments

Twenty years ago, no one had ever heard of a podcast; today, the industry is flourishing as new podcasts are created daily and their listeners increase. The podcast industry has had a year that shatters all prior records, especially in India. Recently, podcast listening has become more popular, and the number of listeners merely keeps rising. In 2022, a growing number of creators launched brand-new podcasts, fueling a boom in the sector. Although podcasts have been around for a while, their rising popularity demonstrates how much room there is for expansion in this business. This year, there were several significant changes in the podcast market, especially in India.  Let’s look at how the industry ends the year with some noteworthy information regarding new podcast apps and upcoming events.

Soaring Numbers

As of June 2022, there were over 2.4 million podcasts with over 66 million episodes between them. There are 383.7 million people who listen to podcasts worldwide as of November 2022. This number is predicted to increase to 424 million by the end of 2022, 464.7 million by the end of 2023, and 504.9 million by 2024. The podcasting industry is valued at $2 billion as of 2022 and is projected to be worth $4 billion by the end of 2024. Apple Podcasts is the leading podcast streaming service, followed by Spotify.

Luminary’s launch

A venture-backed business, Luminary Media offers a subscription-based online audio entertainment service. In November, they released two new podcasts: How I Masaba, which was hosted by Masaba Gupta, a leading figure in the fashion industry, and featured inspiring women discussing business, art, culture, and other topics. The network comes to India with the specific intention of developing a polished podcast listening experience and acting as a “cultural label” for Indian voices and Barefoot Boys, which was inspired by India’s famous soccer victory over the British in 1911 featuring Konkon Sharma.

YouTube launches podcasts

As the trend picks up in the podcasting industry with new creators, YouTube is trying to make its place in the industry. YouTube is embracing its position as the most-used podcast platform by launching a dedicated podcast page. The page debuted in late July and is still in the rollout process, according to 9to5Google. However, it  can be accessed only in the US

 HT Smartcast registers more than 100 million listeners

The podcasting arm of HT Media Ltd., HT Smartcast, is commemorating its third anniversary with a number of achievements. It has received an astounding 100 million+ listens in the last year from more than 200 original podcasts in its library. This demonstrates the rise in popularity of podcasts as an audio format that only gets better with time.

Special Events for Creators

For the first time, Spotify India curated Creator’s Day for podcasters hosting shows in all languages and Some of the largest content creators, including Tarini Shah, Sakshi Shivdasani, Nagma Mirajkar, Saurabh Ghadge, and Manav Chhabra, were present at the event. Kommune too organized Spoken Fest, which involved activities like open mic performances and colorful art and creative sessions in response to the industry’s expansion. Kommune’s Spoken Fest created a special segment for boosting and celebrating the podcasting industry in India.

‘Voice of Anchor’ competition

The contest was organized by Anchor, by Spotify and Winkl, a Good Creator Company. You don’t need any knowledge about podcasting to compete, just your creativity. And what’s more exciting is that the participants got special benefits, like mentorship from famous podcasters like Ranveer Allahbadia, Raj Shamani, Viraj Sheth, RJ Vashishth, Kandarp Relhan and Pavan Srinath.

Spotify video podcasts

Spotify has launched video podcasts this year. What better way to listen to podcasts than to see your favourite creator speak and get lost in their words? To make the podcasts more user-friendly, this initiative was carried out by Spotify.

With this being said, we can already see the growth and impact of podcasts. Seeing the continuous growth of the industry in 2022, surely gives a promising future ahead. As the year comes to a close, the industry has seen a lot of progress, and it still has a lot of room for expansion. 

If you feel like you have the knack to keep up with the industry standards of Indian podcasts and want to create podcasts too, then reach out to AudStory for professional guidance.