Acast

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Acast
TypePrivately held company
Industry
Founded2013; 8 years ago (2013)
Headquarters
Stockholm Edit this on Wikidata
Area served
Worldwide
Services
  • media
  • data and insights
  • production
Subsidiaries
  • RadioPublic
Websiteacast.com


Acast is a Swedish-founded company that provides hosting, monetization and growth support to podcasts. In 2014, it developed a dynamic insertion technology which can target advertising within podcasts based on location, time, and personal data.[1] Acast was founded by  [sv] and Måns Ulvestam in 2013;[2] with Johan Billgren as co-founder, amongst others.[3]

Acast enables digital publishers to insert ads targeting niche audiences.[4][5] The platform distributes, monetizes and markets podcasts including My Dad Wrote A Porno, The Adam Buxton Podcast and Shagged Married Annoyed, as well as publishers including The Guardian, The Economist, Vice, Vogue and the Financial Times.[6][7]

History[]

In 2014, four months after launch, Acast was named Start-up of the Year by IDG magazine, Internetworld,[8] and ‘Most innovative media service’ at mobile industry awards  [sv].[9]

In May 2015, Acast closed a $5m Series A funding round, led by Bonnier Growth Media. This was supplemented by an undisclosed follow-on investment from early-stage venture capital firm MOOR, owned by Kaj Hed, majority owner of Rovio Entertainment.[4][10]

In 2016 Acast launched a paid subscription service called Acast+.[11]

In December 2018 the company raised $35 million from AP1 and Swedbank Robur (sv) funds Ny Teknik and Microcap in Series C funding. This has brought total funding to more than $67 million.[12] In 2019, Acast acquired Pippa, another podcast hosting platform.[13]

Since 2019, Acast has offered a free hosting tier for podcasts.[14] The European Investment Bank invested €25 million in Acast in 2019.[15] In February 2021, Acast bought RadioPublic.[16][17][18][19][20] In April 2021, rumours about an IPO on Nasdaq Stockholm surfaced.[21] Founders Rosander and Ulvestam sold their last shares earlier in 2021, to fund their new startup  [sv].[22] Queerstories joined the Acast Creator Network in May 2021. Acast is no longer available to download onto android devices.[23][24][25]

Notable podcasts hosted by Acast[]

References[]

  1. ^ Dale, Brady (12 June 2015). "Stockholm Startup Acast Solves Podcasters' Advertising Problem". Observer.
  2. ^ "Podcasts were guys talking about tech, then along came Serial". the Guardian. 2017-07-31. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  3. ^ "Få spinn på din försäljning på Amazon – experten ger dig supertipsen". Breakit (in Swedish). Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  4. ^ a b Lawson, Alex (18 May 2015). "After Serial, funding pours into podcasting". The Independent.
  5. ^ Cellan-Jones, Rory (19 August 2016). "Can podcasts turn a profit?". BBC News.
  6. ^ "Acast Sets Its Sights On Smaller Podcasters". Insideradio.com. 21 November 2019.
  7. ^ Thiessen, Connie (25 November 2019). "Acast to sell CBC/Radio-Canada podcast slate globally". Broadcast Dialogue.
  8. ^ "Startuplistan 2014: Här är årets vinnare". Internetworld (in Swedish). 31 October 2014. Archived from the original on 3 November 2014.
  9. ^ "Guldmobilen: här är bilderna på årets vinnare". Mobil (in Swedish). 7 November 2014.
  10. ^ Schweizer, Kristen (9 November 2015). "Swedish Startup Rides `Serial' Wave Taking Podcast App to U.S." Bloomberg.
  11. ^ Perlberg, Steven (23 May 2016). "Podcasts Experiment With Paid Subscriptions". Wall Street Journal.
  12. ^ "Acast raises $35M to help podcasters make money". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2018-12-05.
  13. ^ Stories, Acast: For The (2019-05-02). "ACAST, THE LARGEST GLOBAL PODCAST COMPANY, ACQUIRES PIPPA". Acast. Retrieved 2021-12-03.
  14. ^ "Acast introduces free option to host podcasts". RadioToday. 21 November 2019.
  15. ^ "Infrastructure for an era of crisis". European Investment Bank. Retrieved 2020-08-24.
  16. ^ Ha, Anthony (1 February 2021). "Acast acquires podcasting startup RadioPublic". Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  17. ^ Carman, Ashley (19 Feb 2021). "Acast acquires RadioPublic to become the biggest podcasting company in the US". Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  18. ^ {{cite web | title = Acast becomes ‘largest podcasting company’ with RadioPublic acquisition | first = Cody | last = DeBos | date = 19 February 2021 | publisher = The Burn-In | url = https://www.theburnin.com/startups/acast-acquires-radiopublic-largest-podcasting-company-2021-02-19/ | access-date = 23 May 2021
  19. ^ Dredge, Stuart (22 February 2021). "Podcast update: Acast buys RadioPublic and Podimo raises €11.2m". Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  20. ^ Fischer, Sara (19 February 2021). "Acast acquires podcast tech startup RadioPublic". Axios. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  21. ^ Nordenstam, Sven; Karlsson, Johannes (2021-04-22). "Acast på väg till börsen – kan värderas till över 5 miljarder". Dagens industri (in Swedish).
  22. ^ Wisterberg, Erik (2021-03-31). ""Ska riva ned varenda betalvägg som finns"". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). ISSN 1101-2412. Retrieved 2021-04-30.
  23. ^ Cheik-Hussein, Mariam (21 May 2021). "Queerstories podcast joins Acast". AdNews. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  24. ^ "F.Y.I.Podcast Queerstories joins Acast Creator Network for season 3". Mumbrella. 19 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  25. ^ "Queerstories Podcast Joins Acast Creator Network For Season 3". B&T. 19 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
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