Australian podcast listenership has hit a new high, according to the latest Infinite Dial Australia report, with an estimated 9 million people listening to podcasts on a monthly basis.
The study, conducted by Edison Research with support from CRA, LiSTNR and Triton Digital, is based on a national survey of just over 1,500 people aged 12 or older, and found that estimated 9 million people listened to a podcast in the last month, which now outstrips the US ratio of 42%.
Researchers found that listening peaks highest among those aged 18-24, with 70% reporting that they’ve listened to a podcast in the past month, compared to just 17% of those aged 65 and above. 33% of the total population listen to podcasts on a weekly basis, and those who do consume an average of five episodes per week. 87% of monthly listeners also listen at home, versus 64% in a vehicle, or 54% while walking.
"The Infinite Dial findings mirror what we are seeing at LiSTNR,” said Dave Cameron, chief content officer at LiSTNR parent company SCA, “with record radio audience numbers and record podcast listeners. Audience behaviour is definitively shifting at pace towards a streaming and on-demand world and the digital audio advertising market is growing at similar levels. It demonstrates the strength, engagement and powerful mobility that audio offers listeners on all platforms."
The survey also revealed that Spotify and YouTube are the most-used podcast consumption platforms for Australians, with 34% of monthly podcast listeners most regularly using Spotify and 24% for YouTube.
51% of monthly podcast listeners also said they consume video podcasts that they actively watch, while 14% exclusively watch video podcasts, with no audio-only content.
Podcasts are becoming an increasingly important battleground for Australian media companies and advertisers; earlier this month, the Australian Broadcasting Company announced that it would be increasing its investment in podcasting as part of its new five-year plan, while ARN’s iHeartPodcast network - which is a headline sponsor for this year’s Australian Podcast Awards - also extended its long-running commercial partnership with Audioboom in April.
