Beehiiv Launches Podcasts, Spotify Ad Exchange Growth, & More

0:00This is the Download from Sounds Procredible, your daily source for the central news in the business of podcasting, I'm Gavin Gattas. Here's what you need to know for today, Thursday, April 2. First up, podcast launch on Beehive, newsletter and blogging platform Beehive has rolled out audio podcast hosting and monetization services. In a new interview with Sounds Procredible partner Brian Barletta, Beehive CEO Tyler Denk says podcasts are natural fit as podcasts and newsletters have a lot in common. He positions adding podcasts as a core pillar of Beehive, allowing Beehive publishers with podcasts hosted elsewhere to bring all of their publications into one service. Beehive's hosting has been designed to be IAB compliant with Denk saying the company is about to begin the formal certification process. Next up, the center cannot hold.

1:02Sounds Procredible's latest research to the last quarter finds 25% of Americans who have never consumed a podcast aren't politically neutral. As article writer Tom Webster notes, a linear gradient running from one end of the political spectrum to the other. Those on either end of the spectrum have existing media architecture to drive them to podcasts from MPR driving liberal listeners to podcasts in the 2010s to conservative audiences finding podcasts through clips of creators like Ben Shapiro or Joe Rogan going viral on social media. The problem is algorithmically driven platforms aren't designed to promote moderate content, centrist and moderate conservative podcast holdouts find themselves in a dead zone. As podcasting has no editorial layer that can curate less extreme takes that don't swing hard in either political direction. And for a final top story, Spotify's Add Exchange grew its programmatic base but buyers want more. According to Spotify internal data, the Spotify Add Exchange has seen its monthly active

2:04advertiser count grow 222% year over year since the exchange launched in April of 2025. Media agency Rain for Growth reports its Spotify spend increased 190% from May 2025 to March 2026 with programmatic guaranteed spending increasing 12% in private marketplace spending climbing 64%. The Spotify Add Exchange has made accessing Spotify inventory more streamlined for advertisers but media buyers tell digit A buying audio remains a mix of direct and programmatic. PMG head of programmatic Mario Brian notes buyers still favor going for direct deals when it comes to buying host red podcast ads, a sentiment echoed by a spokesperson for factor. As for the rest of the news, NBC Sports has chosen Triton Digital as the provider of key components in its digital audio and podcasting infrastructure, including hosting, monetization, audience measurement and audience insights.

3:06The Canada Media Funds digital creators pilot program is expanding scope to now accept applications from mid-career Canadian podcast creators looking to grow or expand their business into original video podcast production. TubeVilter covers the news that Alex Cooper is launching a YouTube reality competition show. The series dubbed Unwell Winter Games debuts April 6. ACAST has announced a multi-year partnership with popular Australian podcast It's a lot with Abby Chatfield and the Virginia Queer Film Festival has launched Queer Ear and inaugural audio storytelling program debuting in the 2026 edition of the festival. The Virginia Queer Film Festival is currently taking submissions of audio only storytelling pieces under 25 minutes in length from podcast series, anthologies and standalone projects before the deadline of August 1st.

4:06That'll do it for today's episode reminder, you can get links to every single thing I just talked about by clicking the one link in your show notes. That will take you to today's episode post on soundsprofitable.com, where you can also subscribe to get the newsletters from Soundsprofitable and the Download. Today's episode was written by myself and produced by myself, Molly D'Millier, Brian Barletta and Tom Webster. For Soundsprofitable, I'm Gavin Gattis and I'll see you tomorrow morning for the Download Recap.