I see that 2016 will bring continued and steady growth in the on demand audio and podcast markets though with some consolidation of larger players.

I do see a danger of expectations outpacing the realities around the adoption of on demand audio and podcasting by radio groups and stations.

Radio and Podcasting/On Demand audio will converging more in 2016, but the pace of this convergence between radio and podcasting is a 5+ year evolving direction as radio continues its slow decline and on demand / podcasts grows in listeners and content producers.  So, don’t expect huge progress this coming year.

Content will continue to rule this era in the podcasting and on demand audio market.  I do fear the buzz in the media about podcasting is creating a level of unrealistic expectations for the podcasting market.  The very few are benefiting from this heightened attention to our disruptive medium called “Podcasting”.

We are still early in having one or many major distribution and listening platforms that really are offering the compete solution that will take this medium to the next level.  This will happen as more investment comes into the medium and innovative companies can innovate more.  We are seeing the beginnings of this with a few companies, but we are still a few years away and many millions of dollars short.

I still think that podcast listening and download measurement is still too fragmented in the market.  This is holding back the market as many companies are trying to own measurement as a competitive feature.  This must change and we all get on the same measurement standard for the advertising revenue scale into the billions.

Watch me talk about 2016 predictions below in this past Saturday’s New Media Show episode.