Megaphone (podcasting)
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Podcasting, Software as a Service (SaaS) |
| Founded | February 2015 |
| Founder | Andy Bowers, Brendan Monaghan |
| Headquarters | Reston, Virginia , United States |
Key people | Brendan Monaghan (CEO), Andy Bowers (Chief Content Officer), Matt Turck (Chief Revenue Officer), Jason Cox (CTO) |
| Products | Podcast hosting solutions, monetization tools, advertising network |
Number of employees | 25 (2016) |
| Parent | Spotify |
| Website | megaphone |
Megaphone—previously known as Panoply Media—is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) enterprise owned by Spotify. The company specializes in providing podcast hosting solutions, monetization tools, and an advertising network designed to enhance revenue streams for podcast publishers. Originally established by The Slate Group under the name Panoply Media, it started as a producer of audio content before pivoting exclusively toward developing software that facilitates the monetization, distribution, and analytics of podcasts for both media organizations and independent creators.
Overview
Megaphone was founded in February 2015 by Andy Bowers and Brendan Monaghan and is based in Reston, Virginia. The executive team includes CEO Brendan Monaghan, Chief Content Officer Andy Bowers, Chief Revenue Officer Matt Turck, and CTO Jason Cox. Around 2016, the company had a workforce of roughly 25 employees.
The platform combines sophisticated ad management with content management systems aimed at maximizing podcast monetization opportunities amid a rapidly expanding market. This strategic shift from content creation to technology provision underscores the company’s focus on scalable SaaS offerings within the growing podcast sector.
History
Slate began its podcasting ventures in 2005 with the Slate Political Gabfest. Panoply Media was launched in February 2015 under the leadership of Andy Bowers, Brendan Monaghan, and Matt Turck within The Slate Group. In August 2015, Panoply acquired Audiometric, a firm specializing in dynamic ad insertion technology, bringing on board Jason Cox who would later become CTO. By January 2016, Panoply rebranded Audiometric’s technology as "Megaphone" and extended its availability to external companies.
By February 2017, Panoply had produced over 100 podcasts through collaborations with prominent brands such as Sports Illustrated, The Huffington Post, New York magazine, Time, Inc., Vox, Real Simple, The Wall Street Journal, and Politico. The company also created branded audio content for clients including Purina, Umpqua Bank, Prudential, and Starbucks. In 2017, Panoply introduced Pinna, an audio subscription service tailored to families.
In January 2018, The Slate Group separated its Slate-branded podcasts—such as The Gist—from Panoply’s broader portfolio to retain revenue control and enhance membership growth within Slate Plus, its premium content offering. As a result, Slate podcasts no longer carried Panoply branding.
By September 2018, Panoply discontinued podcast production and closed its editorial department to concentrate solely on podcast hosting, analytics, monetization technologies, and its advertising marketplace known as the Megaphone Targeted Marketplace. Early in 2019, Pinna was spun off as an independent entity owned by Panoply’s parent company Graham Holdings.
In November 2020, Spotify announced its acquisition of Megaphone from Graham Holdings for , finalizing the transaction in December 2020. Following subsequent acquisitions of podcast technology companies Whooshkaa in December 2021 and Chartable in February 2022, Spotify integrated their offerings into Megaphone’s platform. In 2023, Realm Media purchased Pinna from Graham Holdings.
Podcasts Formerly Under Panoply Branding
- Internet Explorer
- No One Knows Anything
- See Something Say Something — delving into the experience of Muslim identity in the United States
- Another Round — discussions on race, gender, and popular culture; hosted by Tracy Clayton and Heben Nigatu
- Intercepted with Jeremy Scahill — produced by The Intercept
- Maeve in America — hosted by comedian Maeve Higgins
- GE Podcast Theater
- The Message — a science fiction series co-created with Slate
- Life.After — a thriller set in a sci-fi context
- Game of Crones — recaps episodes of Game of Thrones
- Happy Sad Confused — features interviews with celebrities
- Lady Problems — addresses issues affecting women
- North Mollywood
- Skillset — provides perspectives from professionals in the film industry
- Speed Dial — conversations on music, pop culture, race, and sexuality
- Team Wolf — centered on the show Teen Wolf
- The Stakes — political podcast that also covers wider cultural topics
- Nerdcast — covers political subject matter
- Off Message
- How Your World Works
- Most Useful Podcast Ever
- In the Limelight
- Little Gold Men — concentrates on the Oscar awards race
- The Ezra Klein Show
- The Weeds — hosted by Ezra Klein, Sarah Kliff, and Matthew Yglesias
- Heard On the Street
- Media Mix
- Money, Markets & More
- MoneyBeat
- Opinion: Foreign Edition
- Opinion: Potomac Watch
- Tech News Briefing
- Watching Your Wealth
- What's News
- Your Money Matters
- Other
- BackStory — weekly podcast exploring American history, hosted by Ed Ayers and others
- Bad With Money — financial topics hosted by Gabe Dunn
- Girlboss Radio with Sophia Amoruso
- GLoP Culture — featuring Jonah Goldberg, John Podhoretz, and Rob Long
- Revisionist History — hosted by Malcolm Gladwell
- T. D. Jakes Podcast
- Detective — interviews with detectives featured in true crime series
- Tumanbay — scripted drama set in an imagined medieval Middle Eastern city; two seasons broadcast in the UK
- Whatever Happened To Pizza At McDonald's? — investigative journalism into McDonald's discontinued pizza product
- LGBTQ&A — interviews chronicling stories from the LGBTQ community with Jeffrey Masters
- By the Book — biweekly podcast testing self-help books with Jolenta Greenberg and Kristen Meinzer
- You Must Remember This — early Hollywood history presented by Karina Longworth
Podcasts Branded by Slate
- Amicus — A podcast examining the U.S. Supreme Court and its legal decisions, hosted by Dahlia Lithwick. It launched on October 23, 2014, and is released multiple times per month.
- Audio Book Club — Monthly literary discussions featuring critics, debuting March 15, 2006.
- Culture Gabfest — A weekly roundtable on cultural news with Stephen Metcalf, Dana Stevens, and Julia Turner, airing every Wednesday since April 23, 2008.
- Daily Podcast — Aggregates all Slate podcasts along with additional content.
- Dear Prudence — Advice column podcast hosted by Daniel Mallory Ortberg, running since June 7, 2016, with origins back to 1997; released weekly on Wednesdays.
- The Waves — Concentrates on women's issues; previously known as The Double X Gabfest.
- The Gist — Daily news and opinion podcast hosted by Mike Pesca.
- Upon Further Review — Limited series sports podcast by Mike Pesca, focusing on sports hypotheticals.
- Hang Up and Listen — Sports-centered podcast.
- Hit Parade — Music history and Billboard Hot 100 analysis hosted by Chris Molanphy.
- Lexicon Valley — Explores subjects related to language.
- Slate Money — Business and finance podcast hosted by Felix Salmon.
- Mom and Dad Are Fighting — Podcast focused on parenting topics.
- Slate Political Gabfest — Weekly political news roundtable.
- Trumpcast — Initially focused on Trump's presidential campaign before shifting to his presidency.
- Whistlestop — Politics podcast hosted by John Dickerson.
- Slate Presents — Anthology miniseries; its first season covered the Ruby Ridge incident, while the second season examined a New York court's handling of illegal gun possession cases.
- Slate's imprint, the Onward Project
- Happier with Gretchen Rubin
- Radical Candor — Concentrates on management practices and workplace relationships.
- Side Hustle School — Hosted by Chris Guillebeau, this podcast explores methods for generating supplemental income alongside a primary job.
Previous productions
- Slate
- Spoiler Specials — cinema-focused
- About Race
- Manners for the Digital Age
- Other
- Politically Re-Active — political comedy series, originally hosted by W. Kamau Bell and Hari Kondabolu, transitioned to Earwolf following its first season.
See also
External links
- https://megaphone.fm
- TheOnwardProject.com, Slate's self-improvement podcast division