This is an archived page from 2019. Find out more
Mohn did not say much about NPR’s rating service RAD (Remote Audio Data), which is technology that is supposed to be able to show advertisers whether their ads are actually being listened to. Are the ads being skipped? Are listeners actually tuned in to the ads advertisers and brands are paying for? The RAD technology is supposed to address all that by being installed by podcast listening apps, capturing data after the download from the player, and sending that data back to the hosting company where those details stats could be posted.
However, it’s been slow to hit the market and there has been some pushback from the companies that would need to deploy the technology over privacy concerns.
Mohn says advertisers are looking for a good currency they can use and downloads are not the answer because they do not tell you if ads are being played and listened to.
He says the technology will be rolling out later this year.