Random Culture

SXSW Interactive Podcasts

The SXSW Interactive conference began last week in Austin. If you're looking for the latest updates from the event, check out the official website. For more in-depth coverage, the organizers are posting podcasts from the event, which you can download or subscribe to here.

Across the Sound Appearance

This weekend, Joseph Jaffe celebrated the 50th episode anniversary of his Across the Sound podcast. As a past guest host, I was excited for the invite to participate in a special anniversary podcast recorded live through a Skypecast. It was my first time being involved in a Skypecast, and although there were some technical glitches, I can see the possibilities.

Congrats to Joseph on the 50th episode of Across the Sound. You can listen to the anniversary episode here, or better yet, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes.

HBO Free Online Television?

HBO has released one of its original documentary films, Too Hot Not to Handle, in its entirety as a podcast. While HBO has been podcasting for a while, this is a new move for them, and reflects a larger shift in the television industry towards offering viewing of complete content online. This also may be a first step for HBO to test the waters. I sure would like to see them follow the footsteps of ABC's recent success.

Watch the whole thing in the HBO Documentary Films podcast. Link via Podcasting News.

Vloggercon Videos

I guess it only makes sense for Vloggercon to put up videos from their conference sessions. View them all here. It looks like there are some interesting topics.

Link via Podcasting News.

First Video Podcast for Preschoolers

Nick Jr. has launched The Wubbcast, a weekly video podcast for preschoolers.

The podcast was created to promote a new show Nick is launching this fall called "Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!" But surprisingly, only some of the weekly podcast episodes are promoting the show. In fact, a good deal of the content will be other cartoon material for kids, submitted from their creators. This means it has longevity well beyond the launch of the show, and it's not just one giant advertisement.

The user submitted content model might sound familar, as it's the same one used by Channel Frederator, who are really the brains behind this podcast. Nick started out advertising on Frederator, and I guess they've seen value in the format. How long before Nick starts airing this podcast content on TV? How long until they start creating online-only channels?

Link via Podcasting News.

Mopar Video Podcasting

The DaimlerChrysler Corporation has launched a video podcast for Mopar. The podcast includes video footage from races and auto shows, commentary and more. The biggest problem I can see is that the videos are way too short. Each is only a couple minutes...

It does look like they're accepting video submissions from viewers, but it doesn't look like the podcast is actually airing any of them yet. I think it's great that they're embracing this new format. Hopefully they'll step it up a notch.

Subscribe to the podcast and learn more at: www.mo-pod.com

Link via Podcasting News.

Travelocity Podcast Sponsorship

Click Here, the interactive agency I work for, has been working with Travelocity for some time now. Recently, we helped to secure a sponsorship for them on the podcast of a popular syndicated radio show, Travel with Rick Steves.

Pete Lerma, our principal at Click Here, has written a great article on the Travelocity podcast sponsorship, as well as the podcast sponsorship space in general. Read Pete's article: "No Formulas for Podcast Sponsorships" at Clickz.

The Travelocity podcast sponsorship has been exciting for me to work on personally. I learned a lot by championing this project for Travelocity, and am proud of the results.

You can listen to the Travel with Rick Steves podcast (including the Travelocity sponsorship) by downloading the podcast in iTunes here, or by visiting the Travel with Rick Steves website.

Mark Cuban's Move to Satellite: Why?

Mark Cuban has signed a deal with Sirius Satellite Radio for a two-hour show called "Mark Cuban's Radio Maverick." I have the same question for him as I did for Howard Stern... Why?

Of course, the paycheck is probably the main reason. But both these guys had the opportunity to do this online and create something really special. They'd have a larger potential audience, and get to keep any revenues for themselves. Yet they both opted to do shows on satellite radio...

I'm more surprised that Cuban would do this than Stern, because Cuban is such an avid blogger.

I guess we'll just have to chalk this up to a missed opportunity.

Ads in iTunes?

Advertising Age has an article about Apple's plans to allow advertising within iTunes. According to the article: "Apple's current plans call for the ads to appear only in the lower-left corner of the iTunes library while users listen to podcasts from their computers rather than from portable devices."

Huh? In case you don't already know, podcast publishers can already control this by creating an "enhanced" podcast, which is very easy to do. How is this something new? Heck, even without creating an "enhanced" podcast, the artwork associated with your podcast shows up here.

The only "new" scenario would be if Apple allowed an advertiser to display an ad while someone else's podcast was playing... and I'm not sure that would go over well. Read the full Advertising Age article here.

Daryl Hannah Video Podcast?

You know podcast has caught on when celebrities are creating their own podcasts without someone paying them to do it. Daryl Hannah has launched a video podcast called "dh love life." No doubt, some people will be lead to believe the podcast is about something else...

In reality, it's a podcast focused on "green" living, such as biodeisel, organic food and other concerns Daryl has about the environment, social issues and more. View all episodes from the last 4 weeks at Dhlovelife.com. A full site will be launching this summer for the podcast.

I've included here the first episode from the Daryl Hannah video podcast about Biodiesel.

Link via Podcasting News.

Podcasts Surpass Radio Stations

Hold on to your hats, podcasts naysayers... Feedburner is reporting that the number of podcast feeds it serves has surpassed the total number of radio stations worldwide. And since Feedburner doesn't have a stranglehold on the podcast market, the actual number of podcasts is certainly much larger.

What's more, the growth they are reporting is pretty impressive. Podcast feed creation through feedburner is growing at 15% per month, and subscribers to podcast feeds are growing at 20% per month.

One more interesting note... Feedburner has seen more downloaders than subscribers. This reinforces the idea that there's a large potential audience outside of iTunes.

Link via Podcasting News.

Don't Believe the Forrester Hype!

Heard about the recent Forrester report claiming that only 1% listen to podcasts? Don't believe the hype.

In my opinion, Forrester is just trying to generate some controversy for buzz. Why? Check out my post on Chaos Scenario about the research details you might have missed from this latest podcasting report.

Amazon Launches Podcast!

Amazon has just launched Amazon Wire, a podcast featuring exclusive interviews with authors, musicians, movie directors and other people behind the products they sell. Visit Amazon Wire at: Amazon.com/podcast.

The first episode includes interviews with Steven Soderbergh, Blondie, the Flaming Lips and Freakonomics author Stephen J. Dubner. I have to say... it's a well produced podcast, with good audio and pretty interesting content. In fact, I'll subscribe as long as they can update it at least once a week. If you'd like to subscribe to Amazon Wire, click here to open the podcast directly though your iTunes.

Castrol Podcasting

Castrol has launched a podcast "series" hosted by Funkmaster Flex. It's called the Castrol "Unlock the Power" podcast, and features podcasts about cars, racing and of course, oil.

But it seems to me that there are several things Castrol hasn't done well with this podcast.

• No real web presence
  I'm a big proponent of having blogs that accompany any podcast. It allows the podcaster to close the feedback loop by giving the audience a destination online, instead of just in their ears. A blog allows the opportunity to solicit feedback, and have the two-way conversation. A podcast by itself is just being pushed out to the listener. What's more, Funkmaster Flex is supposed to be a cool guy, the audience is supposed to be cool, and the Castrol USA site is NOT a cool site.
• It's a "series", not an ongoing podcast
  This is one of those weird issues that marketers are dealing with. Does a podcast have to be an ongoing effort, for all eternity, or can it just be a few episodes and done with. I think the "series" could work, but it doesn't encourage subscription as much.
• Make sure your podcast works in iTunes!
  There are three episodes available on the Castrol site, but only the first one is showing up in iTunes. I sense an RSS feed problem...
• Use a good photo of Funkmaster Flex
  Please, someone use a better photo of the Funkmaster. He looks mad in that picture. I mean, I couldn't find too many pictures online of him smiling, but the photo Castrol is using looks really bad. Here's a side by side comparison:

Link via Micropersuasion.

Update: Someone from Castrol posted a comment below, and I have to say, I give them two thumbs up for the following: 1.) Jumping into this new medium 2.) Listening to feedback in the blogosphere.

Recasting the Concept of Podcasting

The Diffusion Group, which employs a friend of mine, has launched a short article on Designtechnica entitled "Recasting the Concept of Podcasting." It's getting some buzz, specifically for a figure that's quoted:

"80% of podcast downloads never make it to a portable player or another device"

That statistic, from a recent survey by Bridge Data, confirms a suspicion that I've had for a while. In my personal experience, I listen to most of my podcasts on a computer. Why? Because I spend more time with my computer than any other electronic device (including the TV). And I'm not alone.

Now, the central idea of the article is that podcasting's definition, which has a specific connection to personal audio devices, is wrong. I agree with that. I cringe every time I hear a news report or read an article about podcasting that defines it in this manner.

But change the term? I'm not so sure. In fact, check out the Wikipedia entry on podcasting. In it, you'll see that not everyone refers to the "pod" in "podcasting" as an iPod reference. I'm partial to "pod" standing for "personal on-demand." In the meantime, Apple's not complaining.

Microsoft Video Podcast: 10

Microsoft has launched "10", a site that features a daily video podcast. I can't get the best idea of what it's all about based on just a few episodes, but the site says it has something to do with technology news. Based on the content that's up, I wouldn't go that far. Visit the site and check out the video podcast for yourself: www.on10.net.

One of the interesting things about this new effort from Microsoft is that *gasp... they're allowing Quicktime downloads of the podcast, not just wmv files. Kudos for that.

SXSW Interactive Podcasts

SXSW Interactive is podcasting... Check out the complete podcast coverage here. Not sure how often these are going to be updated, but a couple podcasts are already up. Hopefully they have more than just the few listed. There's also a SXSW community blog worth checking out.

As a side note, Click Here's own Pete Lerma will be a speaker on one of the Interactive panels today (Monday the 13th), "Selling Big Ideas to Big Clients." If you're in Austin, drop by the panel and say hello.

Across the Sound #22 Is Ready!

Across the Sound #22, with yours truly as a guest host, is ready for download. You can listen to it by downloading the audio directly, or simply follow this link to subscribe in iTunes.

Jaffe and I talk about our experience podcasting, including my experience with LOSTCasts. In addition, we talk about consumer generated content in relation to Yahoo, Mastercard and Current TV. Our winners and losers for the week are interesting, with Joe's loser (ABC) being my winner.

I certainly had a great time doing the podcast with Joseph, and hope to be back on the air with him soon. This episode is a must listen, so get to it!

John on Across the Sound #22!

I'll be appearing as the guest host on the next episode (#22) of Joseph Jaffe's "Across the Sound" podcast. We're recording this weekend, and it should be ready for you to download next week. If you haven't already, subscribe to Across the Sound in iTunes.

Reminder: Podcast Talk Tonight

Just a reminder that I'll be speaking about podcasting tonight at the Dallas Fort Worth Interactive Marketing Association meeting. You can find out more details here.

The talk begins at 6:00 pm at the Las Colinas country club in Irving. See you there!

Amazon Fishbowl with Bill Maher

You thought I was done talking about online-only TV? Not even close... It seems that Amazon is also jumping into the game. One June 1st, they are launching an original program called "Amazon Fishbowl", hosted by Bill Maher.

According to the official site for the program, Amazon Fishbowl will be a weekly show with "live musical performances; interviews with authors, directors, and actors; and a UPS Special Delivery to an Amazon customer." You can view some sneak preview clips for the show by visiting the official site at: Amazon.com/entertainment.

Amazon doesn't have the greatest track record with this kind of stuff. You may remember the BMW films-esque effort they launched not too long ago. The short films were bad and over-commercialized with product placement.

It seems Amazon already has a couple problems with this new online-only show:

1. Bill Maher just isn't that exciting. Plus, he already has a show!
2. Streaming? Amazon is going to distribute the show in streaming format. Are they going to distribute it as a podcast? I hope so, but at this point, it doesn't look like it.

I will say that I really like one of the segments in the show, where they make a "special delivery" to an Amazon customer with a celebrity. In a smart move, they've worked in UPS as a sponsor of this section. We'll see how this one shakes out.

Link via CommandN.

The Mysterious iTunes User

Nielsen/Netratings has released a report (pdf) about the mysterious iTunes user. According to the report, about 14% of the active Internet population used iTunes in December. In addition, Nielsen/Netratings says that iTunes traffic increased 241% over the last year.

The study also reveals some interesting demographic and behavioral details about iTunes users. iTunes users are fairly even in the gender split, at 54% male, 46% female. They like Volkswagen, Audi and Subaru, and have a preference for hard cider? What the heck, hard cider?

I'd say we should take these numbers with a grain of salt. Nielsen/Netratings didn't reveal their methodology for this report, and it's likely that it has about the same credibility as their DVR panel, which was based on 60 DVRs. You can read more about that fiasco here.

Link via AdFreak.

New Microsite: Guns for Sale

Amnesty International has launched a new microsite "Teleshop: Guns for Sale." On the site, you can watch a video parody of a "home shopping network" channel selling AK-47s. The video is also available as a podcast in the iTunes music store. According to Iain at CrackUnit.com, the site was created by Poke, and the video was created by Mother.

Thanks to Frances for the link.

Speaking Gig: Feb. 7th!

On February 7th, I'll be speaking at the Dallas Fort Worth Interactive Marketing Association meeting on podcasting! The session, entitled "Podcasting - How to Reach People on the Move", will feature myself and two other panelists: Ed Weaver of MPReach, and August Trometer, the creator of iPodderX, Dotmac.info and Blogsnaps.

In my part of the presentation, I'll be speaking specifically about podcasting opportunities for businesses, including publishing and advertising. We'll also have a Q&A segment during the last half-hour or so.

For more details on the session, visit the DFWIMA website here. If you plan on attending, make sure to say hi after the presentation!

AdAge Podcast Shoots and Misses

I'd love to be able to post here about someone doing podcasting right, but the bad ones keep popping up. Advertising Age is not an exception.

They've launched a podcast called "Why it Matters", and I have to say, I'm let down by the quality of it. The sound is pretty atrocious, and it makes the podcast come off as a very amateur endeavor. Come on AdAge, pony up for a good microphone!

It just launched, so we can't tell how often it's updated, but the format appears to be a guest/host format with each episode around 10 minutes or so. If they improved the sound quality, I might actually listen to it.

You can check it out in iTunes here. I'd post a link to the podcast on their site, but AdAge doesn't want anyone to access their content, since they put a subscription wall around everything.

Link via Micropersuasion

Gallup Poll Releases Podcasts

The Gallup Poll is now offering audio and video podcasts that are daily briefings of important news. These podcasts also contain poll information. You can access these podcasts from the Gallup site, or in iTunes.

On the video podcast, the folks at Gallup receive a thumbs down... This has got to be the worst use of green screen technology I have ever seen. I mean, look at the picture. There's not supposed to be a distinct, shimmering outline around the host!

Honda Video Podcasting

The Wieden + Kennedy London blog has posted about a new podcasting effort from Honda in the UK. They've released their latest Honda Civic ad, which features a choir, in video podcast format in iTunes. The 4 episodes in the video podcast include the finished ad, as well as 3 "behind the scenes" episodes.

Follow this link to watch the video podcast in iTunes.

Honda Civic Video Podcast

As a part of the launch of the new 2006 Honda Civic, Honda is reportedly creating a video podcast. The video podcast (or vodcast/videocast) will feature the 2-minute TV ad created by Wieden + Kennedy, as well as video from the "making of" the commercial. I'm not sure if this type of footage really makes a video podcast, but at least we know Honda is making an effort. Why wouldn't they, with Toyota, Lexus, GM, Volvo and all the other car manufacturers getting into the podcast arena.

Link via AdJab.

Big Lexus Podcasting Effort

Lexus has launched a podcasting campaign for the new IS sport sedan. The effort consists of music podcasts that are about 1/2 hour each, and are also sponsored by Vibe magazine. They've launched a microsite for the effort: LexusFusion.com. You can access the podcasts at that site, as well additional content such as video. The podcast doesn't appear to be showing up on iTunes yet, but hopefully it will. Lexus is also undertaking a blog advertising buy to support this effort.

Check out the Clickz article for more details.

Lexus has been very active in the podcasting arena, sponsoring several other podcasts such as KCRW, some AOL music podcasts and podcasts for the US Open. We're sure to see more interesting podcasting efforts from Lexus in the future.

Cool Hunting Video Podcasts

Cool Hunting, one of the best sites out there for the latest trends in design, fashion, tech and more, has launched a video podcast! The short episodes are really well done, and are a great supplement to the site. Visit the site to learn more, or subscribe in iTunes here.

Odeo's Next Step

Odeo launched as a podcast directory, with ability to listen to podcasts directly from the page. Now, however, Odeo has greatly expanded with the addition of tools that allow users to easily create their own podcasts through Odeo. Literally all you need is a microphone or a telephone... that's it. Odeo does the rest. They've been vocal about their vision of "Podcasting for Regular People."

I think it will be interesting to see what kind of a niche Odeo carves out for itself. Right now, at least, it looks like they're trying to become the "Blogger" of the podcasting world.

Learn more about the new Odeo by visiting the announcement on the official Odeo blog.

Link via Biz Stone, Genius.

Advertising Podcasts

I fell a little behind on my podcast listening last week, and missed getting a mention on Across the Sound. If you've never listened to Across the Sound, it's one of the best advertising and marketing podcasts, created by Joseph Jaffe and Steve Rubel. The mention of Random Culture is in relation to the recent Forbes article slamming bloggers, and my father's reaction to coverage of the article on CNN. You can listen to it in Across the Sound #9.

This got me to thinking about advertising podcasts, so I thought I'd put a list together of some of the best advertising and marketing podcasts I've listened to. Got any to add to the list? Leave a comment.

• Across the Sound
  Weekly podcast from Steve Rubel and Joseph Jaffe. One of the best out there. Subscribe in iTunes
  
  
• American Copywriter
  One of the first advertising and marketing podcasts, and officially endorsed by their company, Sullivan Higdon & Sink. Subscribe in iTunes
  
  
• The Advertising Show
  One of the more "produced" shows, and very long... but great content. Subscribe in iTunes
  
  
• Duct Tape Marketing Radio
  From the blog of the same name, small business marketing and tactics by John Jantsch. The audio quality isn't great, and it's not updated very often, but the content is good. Subscribe in iTunes
  
  
• The Marketer's Podcast
  Frequently updated podcast about online and offline marketing, from Alan Stewart and Andrew Winter. Subscribe in iTunes
  
  
• Search Engine Watch
  A daily podcast from notable search engine marketing site, Searchenginewatch.com. It's focused on search, but is a great listen for anyone involved in online marketing with even a marginal interest in search. Subscribe in iTunes

It's important to note that there are a number of much more "niche" podcasts out there, dealing specifically with marketing topics like B2B, word of mouth, and similar topics. Like blog subscriptions, it's easy to get bogged down with subscribing to too many podcasts, and not having the time to listen to them all, but the gems rise to the top.

I will say, there's definitely hit and miss with many of these podcast. Rarely do you find a podcast with great production quality, great content, and frequent updates.

This is just a short list, and I'm sure I'll be posting in the future about new and notable advertising and marketing podcasts. I can already think of multiple ad blogs that I wish were podcasting, or better yet, videocasting. Be on the lookout for some videocasts popping up in this arena soon.

Santa is Podcasting

"Santa will be broadcasting from the North Pole for the first time in history, keeping everyone informed on the latest happenings at the North Pole. As well, he has a story that must be told, how Christmas was saved by two unlikely friends, not long ago. This nine part story will be released part by part with the final installment on Christmas day."

Santa is all about emerging technology. Visit Santa's journal, or you can subscribe to the Santa podcast in iTunes.

Link via Podcasting News.

Fuitcast: Podcasting $$$$

Fruitcast is an interesting service that provides leverage for podcasters to start making revenue. The service essentially sells ads on a podcast, republishes it, and shares the revenue with the podcaster. This is a great way for podcasters without large audiences or experience selling ads to generate revenue. It essentially follows the same network advertising model that many other sites have.

The interesting part about the technology is that ads are dynamically inserted into the podcast mp3 files, so no time has to be spent editing ads into the shows. Pricing right now is apparently a minimum of $0.10 per download, instead of an overall sponsorship fee.

It will be interesting to see how this particular one shakes out. They can't really get traction without having a large amount of "ears" listening, and thus, a large number of podcasts participating in the service.

Link via Podcasting News.

IBM Podcasting Guidelines

Steve Rubel at Micropersuasion points out that IBM has released guidelines for employee podcasting. It's pretty generic, addressing things such as confidentiality, disclaiming your ideas as your own instead of those of the company, etc...

These guidelines are being published because IBM has created a podcasting directory similar to Odeo accessible from the IBM Intranet. So these guidelines are primarily for that internal effort. But the guidelines are generic enough to apply to IBM employees podcasting in "public" as well. After all, there's really no such thing as "internal" anymore.

The best advice, I thought, in the IBM podcasting guidelines is the following:

"Before you initiate a podcast, ask yourself if it is the most appropriate method to communicate with your audience. Before creating a podcast, listen to some. Experience what podcasting is like from the audience's perspective. Go out and listen to some podcasts. What do you think works well? What do you dislike? What is it that you have to say -- and is this the right medium in which to say it?"

Right on.

Open Source Education

Recently, we've been hearing about educational institutions embracing podcasting for lectures. Stanford, in particular, has been making headlines for their efforts. But what I find really fascinating is that they are not just making this material available to students. They're making it available to the public.

All you have to do is visit Stanford on iTunes. They make available faculty lectures, music, interviews with authors, speeches and much more. Is this the beginning of open source education?

Here's an example that illustrates the point, The Personal MBA. The basic concept is that you could learn much of the same information you would getting a traditional MBA by accessing many of the books and resources yourself. This doesn't mean that a traditional MBA doesn't have benefits, but that the knowledge gleaned isn't exclusive. As Josh Kaufman, the creator of The Personal MBA explains: "Business schools don't have a monopoly on worldly wisdom."

I think Stanford on iTunes is a great idea, and hope to see more schools and institutions follow in their footsteps.

Link via Biz Stone.

Movietickets.com Podcasts

Movietickets.com has joined the world of podcasting. They're offering an audio synopsis for some new releases that are delivered via podcasts. You can check out the full list of podcasts here.

Podcasting a Fad?

I went to Houston this weekend, and to kill some time on the very short flight, I bought a not-so-recent Business 2.0 issue. Much to my surprise, in a section entitled "9 Fads to Ignore", the first one was podcasting. According to the article:

"Yes, it�s nice to get MP3s downloaded to your iPod. But where are the revenues? Podcasting will continue, but as a business, it�s the latest iteration of CB radio."

Ouch. My opinion of Business 2.0 just dropped a couple notches. If revenue is the crux of their argument against podcasting, then they might as well throw terrestrial radio stations on here.

Has Business 2.0 been paying attention to the money being spent in podcasting? Granted, it's not much right now because podcasting is in its infancy. But already, major advertisers such as Volvo and Best Buy are already sponsoring podcasts. But even more positive indication in my mind it that these big brands adopted podcast advertising earlier than they did blog advertising.

So why the bleak outlook?

LOST Podcast

If you're a fan of the tv show LOST, check out LOSTCasts.com. We're podcasting weekly, about the latest episode. The podcast focuses on theories and speculation, and we're inviting listeners to submit audio content to include in the show.

AIGA Conference Podcasts

Wow... a ton of great podcasts of presentations from the recent 2005 AIGA Design Conference. You can view the complete list on the resources section of the conference site.

Not only are there great podcasts, but in many cases, the accompanying presentation materials as well. Some of the great podcasts featured: Stefan Sagmeister, Milton Glaser and Nicholas Negroponte.

PC Gamer Podcast

PC Gamer magazine has launched an official podcast with a blog... This is a really great podcast for any gamers out there. The most recent episode features an interview with Sid Meier, referred to as one of the "original game gods." They've also got a ton of current gaming news in each episode of this weekly podcast. This is definitely worth checking out...

AOL Podcasting

AOL has launched a podcasting section on their site. The section has a podcasting 101 for beginners, as well as letting users download or subscribe to some of the better podcasts out there, including content from KCRW, This Week in Tech and a few more. It seems like there aren't hundreds of podcasts available, though... just what's on this page, which is a grand total of like 15 podcasts. Am I missing something?

On interesting aspect is that AOL radio has created a podcasting station that streams these podcasts.

Bookcasting????

LibriVox is volunteer project where people record readings of books that are in the public domain, and those recordings are distributed via podcast. According to the site, it works like this: "a book is chosen, then *you*, the volunteers, read and record one or more chapters. We liberate the audio files through this webblog/podcast every week (day ?)."

It's an interesting idea... yet another way to distribute public domain works.

Link via BoingBoing.

MINI Podcast

Whiteroofradio.com describes itself as "the #1 podcast for the new MINI Cooper!" But they're in no way associated with the company. Shouldn't MINI be embracing this? Link via Podcasting News.

PGA Podcasting

The 2005 PGA Championship has been podcasting. You can find out more about the podcast here and here, and it's also available via subscription in iTunes. The content is really just small clips of a few minutes giving wrap-ups and reports on each day's round.

Thanks to Channing for the link.

CBS Looks for a Podcaster

CBS, through KYOURadio, has put out an open call looking for a podcaster. Actually, they're calling this person an "amateur DJ." The individual selected will, according to the CBS site, "interview CBS stars and create a podcast about the new fall season."

You can fill out the application here, and you'll need to provide a mock three-minute interview.

Make Your Own Vodcast

Before everyone jumps on the podcasting train, here comes the wave of the future. Learn how to create your own "vodcast."

Link via Make:Blog.

Meet the Press Podcast

Meet the Press is now podcasting. You can grab the podcast here. This is the full content of the show, not just clips. Jupiter Analyst Michael Gartenberg points out on his blog, "It was rather funny watching Russert make the announcement this week. When he said the show would be available via "podcast" the look on his face as he puzzled to make sense out of the copy he was reading was priceless."

Enhanced Podcasting

It wasn't too long ago that I was talking to a friend about one of the better podcasts I had seen. It was better because it offered more than just audio. The site that accompanied it included photos, links to things talked about in the podcast, and a ton of other relevant information. That made it more than amateur radio.

It seems that Apple's adoption of podcasting has gone beyond just making them available on iTunes. The folks over at Make:Blog have an enormous write-up on how Apple is now supporting "enhanced podcasts" that include slideshows, URLs and more. You can check out a video of what these podcasts look like here, and the post explains how to make them in full detail.

I expect we'll see more podcasts being "enhanced." This makes them exponentially more valuable to users, but it also opens up new possibilities for advertising and sponsorship.

Lexus Podcast Sponsorship

Lexus has signed an exclusive 26 week sponsorship of the podcasts at KCRW, according to an AdAge article, the six figure deal includes "promoting the sponsorship in a print ad campaign; Lexus logos and links on KCRW.com and on the podcast player; mentions on the air during daily regular programming; and mentions at the beginning of all 22 podcasts."

Kudos to Lexus for recognizing the value of this new medium, and being one of the handful to jump in with both feet.

Link via Adverblog.

iTunes Podcasting is Live

The new iTunes 4.9 is now available for download, and includes support for podcasting. Time to get your podcast on... You can subscribe to podcasts via the iTunes "podcast directory", and there's a new podcast section in the interface that allows you to organize your podcasts.

Link via MAKE: Blog

More MySpace Exclusives

MySpace seems to be finding a niche within the music industry. I posted a while ago about the Black Eyed Peas offering exclusive streaming of their new album, and it looks like others are following suit. Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins fame is offering exclusive streaming for his new album, and according to a Reuters article, the Foo Fighters are offering a podcast.

Link via Billboard PostPlay.

RSS & Podcast Advertising

MarketingSherpa is offering a case study on the effectiveness of RSS advertising and podcasting sponsorship. It's worth a look.

One of the things this case study addresses is the low number of sites that are accepting ads in their RSS feeds right now. However, this case study focuses on individual blogs, that may not have really large syndication. Larger RSS campaigns can be run at places like Feedster. We know Sun Microsystems has been running RSS ad campaigns, and they plan on expanding these efforts.

Poker Podcasting

Poker expert Phil Gordon, who you may know as the host of Bravo's Celebrity Poker showdown, is podcasting from the 2005 World Series of Poker. The podcast includes interviews with poker stars, celebrities and amatuers, as well as commentary.

Open Source Radio

Open Source is an hour-long radio show that launched yesterday on select PRI radio stations, including WGBH in Boston, as well as a handful of others. The idea of Open Source, according to their blog, is "to capture the sound of conversation on the web, share it with a radio audience and then invite that audience back to the web to contribute." Sounds like an interesting idea...

Here's the thread on the Open Source blog to contribute ideas.

Link via Joi Ito.

More Podcasting: TV Guide

There are almost too many of these announcements to keep up with. TV Guide has stepped into the arena, offering a weekly podcast of the latest entertainment news.

Link via Micro Persuasion.

JupiterResearch Podcasting

JupiterResearch adds podcasting to an already impressive group of analyst blogs with JupiterResearch "Conversations."  One of the first podcasts, entitled "Blogs and Brands", is worth checking out... although the quality of sound leaves a little to be desired.

Link via B.L. Ochman.

Liquor Store Podcasting!

This is pretty cool news on the podcasting front... Centennial Fine Wine & Spirits, a Dallas based chain of liquor stores, is podcasting. They've launched their first podcast, which features a corporate fine wine buyer talking about how to buy the right wine.

Any liquor store that's an early adopter of technology like these guys have my drinking business for life...

Link via Exit50, who was featured in a news story about podcasting along with Centennial Fine Wine & Spirits.