A topic of conversation in the industry is the fact that most major podcasts are experiencing a decline in downloads due to changes to how automatic downloads work in Apple iOS 17. Even on programs that are considered safe, this american life, a decrease of approximately 20 percent was observed. But as we discuss (often!!), downloading is not the same as listening. That's why it's always good to get some different data. Edison Research released its annual Infinite Dial report yesterday and found a bit of good news: 47 percent of Americans age 12 and older listen to a podcast every month, which is an increase of 5 points from last year. .
This is the largest increase since 2019, when Edison posted a six-point increase. This shows that listening to podcasts is becoming a more regular part of America's media diet, even though the industry is still figuring out its business side. Edison found that the percentage of listeners each week also increased, from 31 percent of Americans over the age of 12 to 34 percent. They estimate the number to be around 98 million.
Edison's numbers are based on survey data, not raw download numbers. That's a good thing, considering the mess in podcast data these days. That doesn't mean data is gospel, but it can add further nuance to our understanding of how the general public (not just podcast aficionados) engages with this medium .
