PITTSBURGH – Wizzard Media (NYSE Amex: WZE), the world’s leading podcasting network, announced that their podcast iPhone App has been approved and is in the App Store with iAds functionality. Select podcast Apps in the Wizzard network are live now in the iTunes store with inventory being filled with iAds.
iAds are interactive brand advertising campaigns with inventory sold and filled by Apple featuring a higher CPM and ROI revenue potential for Wizzard than current in App advertising initiatives. Wizzard believes its podcast App, with consistent repeat viewers and sustained demographic verticals are best suited to maximize iAd revenue.
“iAds brings another dimension of monetization to our mobile network of podcast Apps,” says Laurie Sims, President, Wizzard Media. “Our network pulls a repeat audience that is highly engaged and invested in our content. This is the optimal audience to take advantage of iAds. Since our deployment of version 1.7 of the Podcast App we have been iOS 4.0 compatible (new iPhone 4) and ready for iAds. Initial tests thus far have indicated high CPMs meeting or exceeding our current levels of campaign monetization.”
“What’s innovative about Apple’s strategy is their ability to handle the deep targeting of the customer based on iTunes data to the benefit of the iAd partners,” says Dave Mansueto, Wizzard Media. “The Apps that stand to benefit the most from Apple’s iAds are those that have high audience retention rates. Wizzard sustains repeat audiences with enhanced demographic verticals so our potential to benefit from iAds is strong. This is, and has always been, the strength of our network. Apple sells and fills the ad inventory with premium brand advertisers allowing Wizzard to focus on improving the experience and growing the audience.”
About Wizzard Media:
Wizzard Media provides podcast publishers with distribution and monetization services. Our clients include Microsoft, National Geographic, Harvard Business Review, Usher, NPR and more than 15,000 others who use Wizzard Media products to measure their podcast audience, deliver popular audio and video entertainment and monetize their content through advertising and App sales. In 2009, the Wizzard Media Network received over 1.4 billion podcast requests from approximately 50 million people worldwide through iPods, iPhones, iTunes, Zune and many other devices and destinations. We are part of a publicly held, Pittsburgh based company with thousands of shareholders and a world-class team. Visit us on the web at www.wizzardsoftware.com/media, email us at [email protected].
