Largest Podcast Publisher iHeartMedia Launches First-of-its-Kind Private Podcast Marketplace for Brands

New Private Programmatic Marketplace Offers Advertisers Access to Premium Audiences at Scale Across iHeartMedia’s Vast Catalog of Podcasts

NEW YORK – May 5, 2021 – iHeartMedia (NASDAQ: IHRT) today announced the launch of a new, first-of-its-kind Private Marketplace. The new Private Marketplace will provide advertisers with programmatic buying access to distribute their marketing to audiences across the most diverse and comprehensive library of shows in the world from the iHeartPodcast Network - the No. 1 podcast publisher globally - which has more than 30 million US monthly uniques and 257 million global downloads and streams.

This new technology allows brand advertisers to create their own unique, tailored marketplaces – composed of their specific audience targets and pricing, to dial up and down across each year as their marketing needs require – across iHeart’s mass reach podcast network, the largest in the world. With this new technology developed through iHeartMedia’s recently acquired Voxnest, advertisers will gain private access to target iHeartMedia’s unparalleled and diverse podcast library by content, geography and consumer psychographics. The iHeartPodcast Network includes hundreds of iHeartRadio original podcasts spanning every category from business, sports, spirituality and technology to entertainment, family, comedy and true crime including the most successful podcast of all time, “Stuff You Should Know,” and hits like “The Ron Burgundy Podcast” and the “Atlanta Monster'' series as well as over a hundred shows from its on-air talent like the popular “Bobbycast” and “The Breakfast Club” on-demand podcasts.

“We acquired Voxnest last Fall with the plan to be able to provide podcast advertisers with additional targetable inventory at scale by allowing the effective and efficient monetization across an entire range of podcast inventory. Voxnest connects all of the fragmented platforms that exist in podcasting - the launch of this Private Marketplace is a huge milestone in the podcast industry and advances these capabilities to buyers,” said Brian Kaminsky, Chief Data Officer and President of Revenue Strategies for iHeartMedia. “Our podcasts attract some of the most engaged and passionate podcast listeners in the world and now advertisers will have massive scale and highly specific targeting at their fingertips, to reach these hundreds of millions of listeners who are now consuming podcasts.”

With this new Private Marketplace, advertisers will have the ability to reach their specific audience based on three specialized targeting options:

  • Category -- Allows brands to advertise across the iHeartPodcast Network’s diverse and comprehensive network of shows and includes categories such as Business & Finance, TV & Film, History, True Crime, Society & Culture, Music, Sports, Health & Fitness, Comedy, Science & Tech, Parenting & Family and News & Citizenship.
  • Geolocation -- Allows brands to tap into the iHeartPodcast Network’s massive audience to deliver relevant messaging to a specific region within a premium podcast environment.
  • Psychographic -- Uses a suite of data-driven Psychographic Podcast Networks, enabling brands to buy across a set of shows that speak to specific consumer behaviors like the conqueror, explorer, legend, cultivator, decider, thriver, rising star, advocate, backer and intrepid.

iHeartMedia’s Private Marketplace will offer advertisers multiple deal types including Programmatic Guaranteed (PG), Preferred Deal (PD), Private Auction (PA) and Open Marketplace (OMP). Buyers interested can email ProgrammaticAdOps@iHeartMedia.com.

About iHeartMedia, Inc.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ: IHRT) is the number one audio company in the United States, reaching nine out of 10 Americans every month. It consists of three business groups.

With its quarter of a billion monthly listeners, the iHeartMedia Multiplatform Group has a greater reach than any other media company in the U.S. Its leadership position in audio extends across multiple platforms, including more than 860 live broadcast stations in over 160 markets nationwide; its National Sales organization; and the company’s live and virtual events business. It also includes Premiere Networks, the industry’s largest Networks business, with its Total Traffic and Weather Network (TTWN); and BIN: Black Information Network, the first and only 24/7 national and local all news audio service for the Black community. iHeartMedia also leads the audio industry in analytics, targeting and attribution for its marketing partners with its SmartAudio suite of data targeting and attribution products using data from its massive consumer base.

The iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group includes the company’s fast-growing podcasting business -- iHeartMedia is the number one podcast publisher in downloads, unique listeners, revenue and earnings -- as well as its industry-leading iHeartRadio digital service, available across more than 250 platforms and 2,000 devices; the company’s digital sites, newsletters, digital services and programs; its digital advertising technology companies; and its audio industry-leading social media footprint.

The company’s Audio & Media Services reportable segment includes Katz Media Group, the nation’s largest media representation company, and RCS, the world's leading provider of broadcast and webcast software.

Visit iHeartMedia.com for more company information.