The Toronto Star has launched a new service called the Toronto Star Podcast Network. The service, which is available on the newspaper’s website, is meant to promote both the company’s podcasts and content from other providers.
The network also adds value for brands, Torstar says. Advertisers can sponsor programs or run CPM campaigns by targeting a package of podcasts on a specific genre. The packages include relevant Star programs and are complemented by podcasts from American company Libsyn.
“Previously, clients could get into Star podcasts direct through single
Torstar says it has launched the network to foster a sense of community among its listeners while also serving as a content centre for Canadians to discover more of the Star’s titles and selected partners. It is also a good way to help the industry thrive. The network optimizes production, promotion and resources that were previously show-specific to support the development of new shows, says the company.
The announcement coincides with the release of the latest season of the Star’s true-crime investigative podcast, Suspicion (pictured). The third season, which premiered this week, takes listeners on a journey that began in 1983, when two women were murdered in their homes in Toronto.
Other titles included in the podcast network are The Kids Aren’t All Right, which analyzes the different challenges that the country’s children face; The Ultimate Choice, about a man with an incurable disease who chooses a medically assisted death; and the series Millennial Money, which delves into the lives of millennials in the GTA and covers topics such as savings, cost of living and student debt.
The entire network offers more than 11 million monthly impressions with 1.3 million monthly unique listens across 1,600 shows.
