New format to supercharge influencer marketing in programmatic podcasting: Acast

Acast, the world’s largest independent podcast company, announced last week the launch of Talent-Voiced Ads. The new format will allow advertisers to leverage podcast talents’ recognizable voices across scripted audio ads, Acast says.

Brands can now pay to have Acast talent voice their scripted ads, run across Acast’s network of more than 140,000 shows. Talent-Voiced Ads is available programmatically, allowing advertisers to access Acast’s network at scale and opening up further revenue streams for creators. The Acast network is home to established podcasting personalities, including Cat & Nat and Jessi Cruickshank.

Talent-Voiced Ads have been tested so far with Acast talent including Couples Therapy, We Mean Well and Equity Mates, for advertisers including Telstra and Officeworks.

Unlike host-read sponsorships – where the podcaster promotes a sponsor in relation to their own podcast – Talent-Voiced Ads use the trusted voice of the podcaster for the voiceover of a brand’s own ad, to be distributed at scale across the podcast company’s network, Acast says.

“Talent-Voiced Ads combine the best of Acast and podcasting: authentic influencer voices with precision targeting at scale,” says Greg Glenday, chief business officer at Acast. “It helps challenge the myth that programmatic always equals low CPMs and poor-quality ads. And in an age of AI, we’re offering creators a way to protect and monetize their recognizable voices themselves, taking an even bigger slice of the creator economy pie. It’s a win-win for podcasters, advertisers, and listeners.”

Bell teams up with Zoom to offer AI-first capabilities to Canadian businesses 

Bell and Zoom on Tuesday announced a partnership to offer Workplace, an open collaboration platform with AI Companion, available to Canadian enterprises exclusively through Bell later this year.

With its AI-first capabilities built-in to every product and not “bolted-on” to existing features, Workplace will complement existing Bell services. In addition to Zoom AI Companion, key Workplace features include flexible workstyles that support hybrid and remote work models with tools accessible from any device and simplified communication across teams with calling and integrated video conferencing, messaging and file sharing.

“This partnership with Bell represents a truly unique opportunity to bring the power of the Zoom platform to the Canadian market,” Graeme Geddes, chief sales and growth officer with Zoom. “We’re excited to work alongside Bell to deliver a solution that’s not only innovative but also specifically tailored to the needs of Canadian businesses. This collaboration sets a new standard for enterprise collaboration in Canada.”