More than 46 million Americans download podcasts every month — and The E.W. Scripps Company wants those ears.
Scripps has acquired Midroll Media, an industry leader that operates a network of 200 shows. Some of the popular Midroll podcasts include "StartUp," "Nerdist" and "WTF with Marc Maron."
Maron recently hosted President Barack Obama as he was trying to appeal to a unique audience. The historic episode was recorded in Maron's home garage, protected by the Secret Service.
"Take a look around when you take a walk down the street, if you ride the subway or bus and even inside your workplace – everyone has earbuds in," Scripps' Chief Digital Officer Adam Symson said. "It’s no surprise audio streaming and podcast listening is at an all-time high."
Scripps is planting a big flag into the audio streaming ecosystem with this acquisition, he said.
"We think podcasting represents one of the important platforms for the future of journalism, storytelling and entertainment," Symson said.
Midroll's slate of podcasts meets the listening desires of a varied audience. It produces 35 original podcasts through its comedy and pop-culture driven networks, Earwolf and Wolfpop.
LISTEN: The Wolf Den: Scripps, Midroll leaders discuss acquisition
Midroll Media, which is led by CEO Adam Sachs, also recently launched Howl, a smartphone app for searching and interacting with its podcasts.
Sachs and the company's two co-founders, comedian Scott Aukerman and entrepreneur Jeff Ulrich, will continue to lead Midroll.
"We’ve accomplished so much as a bootstrapped company, more than anyone could have predicted, and our entire team should have great pride in that," Ullrich said. "Now the focus is on the future, and with the massive opportunity I see for the industry in general and Midroll specifically, becoming part of Scripps enables Midroll to accelerate growth and extend its leadership position."
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