Entercom, the #1 creator of live, original, local audio content
and the home of RADIO.COM, the fastest growing digital audio app in
the United States, today announced that it has acquired Pineapple
Street Media, an award-winning, renowned independent producer of
top-rated podcast content, and reached an agreement in principle to
acquire Cadence13, an industry leader in podcast creation and
distribution, to create a powerhouse podcast division under
RADIO.COM.
Through the strategic acquisitions of Cadence13 and Pineapple
Street Media, Entercom will become one of the country’s top three
podcasters and a leading creator, distributor and seller of
top-rated podcast content. The deal will bring together a
combination of strengths to create a unique leadership position
that leverages Entercom’s scale across the top 50 U.S. markets,
reach of 170 million listeners per month, enhanced targeted data
capabilities, and top-rated portfolio of spoken word brands, and
both Cadence13 and Pineapple Street Media’s capabilities as two of
the industry’s leading developers and sellers of original podcast
content. Podcast episodes published or distributed by Entercom,
Cadence13 and Pineapple Street Media were downloaded more than 150
million times per month in the second quarter of 2019.
Entercom will operate a best-in-class portfolio of top-rated
podcasts, including Pineapple Street Media’s The Clearing which
recently launched as the #1 podcast on the Apple Charts. The
network will also include over half of the titles named to Apple’s
“10 Best So Far” podcast list in 2019, with notable titles such as
Root of Evil, Against the Rules, To Live & Die in L.A., Missing
Richard Simmons, Running from COPS, Gangster Capitalism and Billy
Balls, among many others. The addition of this best-in-class
portfolio of podcast content, industry-leading creators and
production capabilities will reinforce RADIO.COM’s position as a
leading destination for live and on-demand digital audio content
across news, entertainment, music and sports.
As part of the acquisitions, Pineapple Street Media will become
Pineapple Street Studios, a division of RADIO.COM, focused on
high-quality content creation and production of unique,
market-leading original podcast content for both RADIO.COM, as well
as the broader podcast ecosystem. The new Pineapple Street Studios
will continue to produce hit shows and build on its position at the
forefront of partnership podcasts with brands including Disney,
HBO, Netflix, Nike and more. Pineapple Street co-founders, Jenna
Weiss-Berman and Max Linsky, will join the new organization as
co-heads of this division, reporting into J.D. Crowley, Chief
Digital Officer, Entercom.
Additionally, Cadence13 will become a wholly owned subsidiary of
Entercom, named Cadence13, a division of RADIO.COM, and will
continue to operate as a leader in the podcast space, with a full
slate of unique services for top creators including audience
development, production and monetization. Spencer Brown, Chief
Executive Officer, Cadence13, will join the new organization as
head of the division, reporting into J.D. Crowley, Chief Digital
Officer, Entercom. Chris Corcoran, Chief Content Officer,
Cadence13, will continue to lead content for the division, and John
Murphy, President, Cadence13, will also be part of the leadership
team. Cadence13 will continue to partner with top podcasters such
as Crooked Media and Pushkin Industries while also expanding its
client roster, leveraging Entercom’s broadcast reach and
RADIO.COM’s digital platform.
“Today marks another transformational event at Entercom and we
are thrilled to welcome the outstanding teams and content partners
at both Pineapple Street and Cadence13,” said David Field,
Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, Entercom. “With
these important acquisitions, Entercom will stand as a unique
leader in the audio universe with both the greatest collection of
premium, original local audio content along with arguably the best
national podcast content. With RADIO.COM emerging as the fastest
growing digital audio app in the country and Entercom Advanced
Audio bringing to market a burgeoning set of data, analytics and
attribution capabilities, we are well positioned to participate in
the exciting audio renaissance and the powerful opportunities to
work with our thousands of customers across the country on their
increasingly important audio strategies.”
“It is an exciting day for all lovers of audio – creators,
listeners and advertisers,” said J.D. Crowley, Chief Digital
Officer, Entercom. “The leadership teams at both Cadence13 and
Pineapple Street Media are the best in the business, and their
tenacity, creativity and reputations are unmatched. The collection
of leading content brands in the Cadence13 Podcast Network, coupled
with their scale and leadership position with the advertising
community, combined with the innovative slate forthcoming from
Pineapple Street Studios will further strengthen RADIO.COM’s
position as the premiere destination for live and on-demand audio
news, entertainment, music and sports content in the U.S.”
“This is an incredibly exciting day for us and our team of
podcast producers,” said Max Linsky, co-founder, Pineapple Street
Media. “We started Pineapple three years ago with the simple goal
of making great shows that found huge audiences, and joining forces
with the amazing teams at Entercom and Cadence13 means we can do
that at a scale we never imagined.” “This is an amazing time for
podcasting,” said Jenna Weiss-Berman, co-founder, Pineapple Street
Media. “This moment is unprecedented – the energy, the growth, the
talent coming to the medium. I am thrilled to be working with the
incredible leadership teams at Entercom and Cadence13.”
“Consolidation with Entercom will greatly accelerate the next
phase of our growth,” said Spencer Brown, Chris Corcoran and John
Murphy, founding partners of Cadence13. “Through its robust
portfolio of broadcast radio stations and the RADIO.COM platform,
Entercom offers Cadence access to a national audio platform that
will accelerate revenue and development of our audience engagement
efforts. This acquisition helps us extend the reach of our partners
and build their audiences across the audio landscape.”
Telos Advisors served as exclusive financial advisor to
Pineapple Street Media in this transaction.
About Entercom Communications Corp.
Entercom Communications Corp. (NYSE: ETM) is a leading American
media and entertainment company reaching and engaging over 170
million people each month through its premier collection of highly
rated, award winning radio stations, digital platforms and live
events. As one of the country’s two largest radio broadcasters,
Entercom offers integrated marketing solutions and delivers the
power of local connection on a national scale with coverage of
close to 90% of persons 12+ in the top 50 markets. Entercom is the
#1 creator of live, original, local audio content and the nation’s
unrivaled leader in news and sports radio. Learn more about
Philadelphia-based Entercom at www.entercom.com, Facebook and
Twitter (@Entercom).
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190807005401/en/
Esther-Mireya Tejeda Entercom 212-649-9686
Esther-Mireya.Tejeda@Entercom.com @EntercomPR
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