Sponsored by SoundStack. Power to your podcaster portfolio in '25. Helping them earn more programmatic revenue is simple with SoundStack. Learn how. Exclusive: Spain’s Hoy en EL PAÍS has been claiming impressively high download figures; yet today, Podnews can reveal that many of the downloads were never heard. The 14MB podcast was observed automatically downloading, without user intervention, in a browser using an iPhone user-agent - just by visiting the elpais.com homepage.: thus artificially growing the download numbers from every mobile visitor to the website. El País got over 118mn visits in September, according to similar web, making it the largest Spanish newspaper online. It’s owned by Prisa. The podcast is apparently the 12th biggest show, by downloads, on Triton’s Latin America Podcast Ranker, and 45th in Podtrac’s estimated Spanish podcast ranker - the show, hosted by Triton Digital, also appears to contain a spot for programmatic advertising. Podnews notified the newspaper of this behaviour, with a method to reproduce it, and asked for a statement. The auto-download behaviour has now quietly ceased. If you think you’ve seen this before, iHeart was auto-loading podcasts on its over 1,000 radio station websites in 2018. Acast released its Podcast Pulse report, working with Edison Research. 80% of podcast listeners tune into niche podcasts, with 63% saying they are less likely to skip ads on those shows. 92% say they listen to podcasts because they cover topics more in-depth than other media. The data is available in full here. The winners of the Signal Awards were announced. 170,000 votes were cast for the Listener’s Choice Award winners. > > > Read more of today’s podcast industry news stories on the Podnews website: and get our free daily newsletter.Classifieds - your job or ad hereWork with an award winning podcast producer! — I can save you hours of editing so you can focus on making great content. Book a free Discovery Call with me, Niall Mackay, to see how we can help you! “Top-notch podcasts, expertly produced.”✨ Monetize your podcast with website memberships! — Create a beautiful podcast website, automate your publishing workflow & customize everything. Add restricted content behind paywalls, allow visitor signups and get paid by your fans right on your siteLUIS GUERRA - Music Composer and Nice Human — Need a theme song or original music for your show? Need help with the musical direction? Have questions about licensing? Need help editing, mixing/mastering? Get in touch! luisguerramusic@gmail.comGold supporters: Buzzsprout, Mowpod, Mamamia, The $100 MBA, The Podglomerate, Sounds Profitable, Cloud10, Resound, Simplecast, audioBoom, Steve Lack: Audio, RedCircle, Podscribe, SALT, Cohost, Audiohook, Riverside.fm, Jar Audio, Podchaser, Awesound, We Edit Podcasts, Libsyn, Evergreen Podcasts, Podpage websites, Acast, Knucklehead Media Group, DisctopiaSilver supporters: Audacia Audio, Gamut Podcast Network, Bumper, Goalhanger, PodLabs - Podcast Experimentatio, Magellan AI, Deepcast Creator, SoundStack, Castbox, Truefans, The Roost, Jonekiri, Frequency, Gumball, Podium , POW PR, PlayPodcast, Ausha, Storyboard, Gilded Audio, Red Seat Ventures, Compliance Podcast Network, Ask Ralph Christian Finance, Voxtopica, Geopolitics and Empire podcast a, Tink Media, The Podcast Haven, ARN's iHeartPodcast Network Aust, Huberman Lab, Podcastpage, Message Heard, Health Podcast Network, Zvook, Wondery, Rephonic, Ossa Collective, Sonic Influencer Marketing, Lemonada Media, Transistor, Jam Street Media, matchmaker.fm, Oxford Road, Diversion Podcasts, Podcast Taxi, Castos, Double Elvis Productions, Blubrry, Optimal Living Daily, Heartcast Media50, Rhapsody Voices, Headliner, StreamGuys, Ad Results Media, Hear.Here.Singapore, Content10x, Podcast Partnership, She Podcasts, Cleanfeed, School of Podcasting, Podcast Movement, Lower Street, Adopter Media, Sonix, Podigy, Revolver Podcasts, Edison Research, Signal Hill InsightsOur supporters pay for Podnews, so everyone can read it. Join them today.Image: AbsolutVision