Podcaster secures millions to expand global reach

Nova Entertainment’s alliance with the Stockholm based podcaster Acast is starting to reap dividends with the Swedish technology company securing $24 million in funding to expand its Australian and global operations.
 

The company recently signed a partnership with Nova establishing the biggest podcast player in the Australian market due to their combined inventory.

The Nova-Acast partnership gave Acast a foothold in the Australian market and the ability to launch a portfolio of podcasts including show content as well as original productions in non-radio categories currently in development. Nova announced it would also provide opportunities for new and emerging audio content creators through grants of financial assistance and access to Nova’s production facilities.

Acast says the funding will be used to significantly expand its engineering team to continue to develop Acast’s audio-on-demand technology suite. The new funds will also help accelerate the growth of the US market and expanding into new international markets.

Henrik Isaksson, Acast’s Country Manager – Australia, hopes the recent funding will support its efforts in Australia and his priority is to grow the platform’s presence helping local podcast providers monetise content and give listeners an enjoyable place to discover it.
 
“A huge 3.4 million Australians listened to a podcast in May this year, at an average of six per week. We’re committed to providing an end-to-end platform to give Aussies an optimum podcast experience, providing: a content management system, analytics engine, distribution network, advanced advertising service, listening app, and sales assistance force.”
 
In the three years since its founding, Acast has pioneered the dynamic advertising insertion model, and has become the platform of choice for more than 2,000 audio content creators. 

When it announced the partnership in February, Cathy O’Connor, NOVA Entertainment’s CEO said, “Australia is increasingly becoming a nation of podcasters and the podcasting medium provides new opportunities for advertisers to connect with defined audiences. Acast is a global best practice provider of podcasting tech and together we aim to educate the Australian market on the unique opportunities podcasting provides to advertisers”
 

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