YouTube is dangling up to $300,000 for podcasters and podcast networks that create video versions of their programs.
In a Bloomberg report, sources reveal that YouTube is offering $50,000 to individual shows and $200,000 and $300,000 to podcast networks. The grant should allow producers of podcast content to create video versions of their shows.
YouTube Grants to Boost Podcast Programming Efforts
As such, the initiative should boost programming efforts of the Alphabet, Inc.-owned video sharing platform and beef up its emerging podcast lineup. YouTube has since become a choice platform for podcasts, without dedicating investments to the format.
It has since developed A-listers in its lineup, including Joe Rogan and the H3 team, who grew a dedicated following on YouTube due to its discovery algorithm. They have since established themselves as the most popular podcasters in the U.S., based on data from Edison Research.
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However, creating a video version of their podcasts entails building studios, hiring editors, and developing a video publishing system that carry immense costs, discouraging adoption. YouTube's efforts seek to encourage podcasters and podcast networks to make that shift.
YouTube has since initiated moves indicating its expanded interest in the podcasting space. The company had appointed a longtime top executive, Kai Chuk, to head its podcasting efforts. It also ceased charging users in Canada for a feature only available to Premium users-being able to listen to YouTube content while doing other tasks on the device.
Podcast Industry Hits Exponential Market Growth
This comes after exponential market growth in the podcast industry.
According to Forbes, audience engagement and ad spend are reaching superb highs, in addition to name recognition and branding. There are more than 12 million new podcast listeners in 2021, reaching over 116 million monthly listeners, further data from Edison Research showed. Time listening to podcasts rose by 13 percent, compared to 2021, and increased 31 percent from 2020, a separate report from eMarketer said.
Forbes further made bold predictions for the podcast landscape in 2022.
It first forecasted that the entire internet will be converted to audio and deployed on-demand. This will eventually make the podcast medium filled with better content from the world's top creators and producers. In addition, magazines have also since adopted publications into podcast form, the rising trend of text-to-speech technology can turn any print article into its podcast form.
TV shows have also benefited a lot from extra content, and thus a podcast offering should experience a boom. They can strip audio from their programs and distribute them as podcasts. Audiobooks will also evolve and become limited-series podcast episodes.
It also predicted that podcasters and podcast networks will delve into creating video versions of their podcasts, but said they won't determine an immediate need for it. This is due to huge costs that go with video production, and podcasters would choose to retain their current audio-only medium.
Audio production costs, Forbes added, are streamlined and efficient, and increased investment on video would not result in a hefty return on investment when it comes to clicks. Likewise, listeners look for podcasts for its audio-only format, which allows access with or without a screen.
YouTube seeks to change all that with its grant initiative.
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