British Podcast Awards winners announced

• In London, the winners of the British Podcast Awards were announced. Podnews’s Sam Sethi handed the Gold award for Best News & Current Affairs podcast, supported by Campaign, to The Guardian's Today in Focus. Podcast of the Year was awarded to the BBC Radio Wales show A Positive Life: HIV from Terrence Higgins to Today, hosted by singer-songwriter Sam Smith.

  • The Australian Podcast Awards, operated by the same company, will be held in the Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour on Nov 21.

• Daniel Ek guests on the latest episode of Diary of a CEO with Steven Bartlett. In it, he claims that Apple is hurting customers: “So many of the tactics that made [Apple] the rebel kind of thing are now stifling innovation. And it’s really hurting consumers to a great extent."

  • “The truth of the matter is some of it has worked, some of it hasn’t,” Daniel Ek told the BBC on the subject of Spotify’s podcast strategy.

• In the UK, BBC Sounds is the third biggest platform used most often to listen to podcasts, according to Edison Podcast Metrics UK. Spotify is #1. Speaking on the Podnews Weekly Review, Edison Research’s Melissa Kiesche also reveals big differences with Joe Rogan’s audiences in the UK and the US.

• First look: Acast has been named by Warner Bros Discovery as exclusive podcast distribution and monetization partner for a number of the company’s brands. The companies have worked together for Investigation Discovery for three years.

• 58% of Australians listen to podcasts, claims new data from YouGov. The data also suggests that music is the most listened-to podcast genre, and Spotify is the #1 platform. 8% of all Australians use Google Podcasts, which is to close next year.

• Spotify says podcast listening has more than doubled in the past year in Mexico. Comedy podcasts are the favourite there; the data also says that podcast ad revenue in Mexico is expected to reach $48mn.

• Podwise has been launched - an AI-powered note-taking app for podcasts.

Tomorrow is International Podcast Day 2023 - have a great day and tell someone about your favourite show!

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Moves and hires

• Mike Thomas has been made Group Business Director at Acast in the UK as part of a restructure and set of promotions. Dapo Olowu and Imogen Hudson have been promoted to Key Account Director positions, and Amelia Chapman has stepped up to Account Executive.

Podcast News - with Airwave

From the Airwave Podcast Network: Emotional Badasses are survivors, thrivers, seekers, and healers! Emotional Badass is hosted by psychotherapist Nikki Eisenhauer, and is where we learn to love ourselves without apology.

Powering Travel is to return for a new season later in the year, the company announced. The show has a listenership spanning across 140 countries and boasting over 64,000 downloads, and has become a vital resource for anyone operating in the travel industry.

Contributors is wrapping up its second season. The podcast showcasing the innovative and strategic contributions leaders make today to ensure a better future for Canada.