Fox’s Red Seat Ventures plugs podcast ads into Amazon’s buying machine
Amazon advertisers will be able to buy programmatic ad space across Red Seat Ventures’ roster of audio and video podcast creators.
By Bianca Rossi · Entertainment Editor
2 min read
Fox Corp.’s Red Seat Ventures is opening its podcast ad inventory to buyers using Amazon’s demand-side platform, giving marketers a new route into shows tied to personalities including Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson and Bill O’Reilly.
Variety reported that the agreement will let advertisers purchase programmatic commercial space across Red Seat’s audio and video podcast portfolio through Amazon. The deal adds Red Seat to a growing list of media companies using Amazon’s ad tech to sell inventory in automated marketplaces.
Red Seat Ventures works with more than 40 creators, according to Variety. Its roster spans true crime, comedy, news, sports and entertainment, giving Amazon’s ad buyers access to a mix of podcast audiences rather than a single genre lane.
Jeremy Price, senior vice president of sales at Red Seat Ventures, said in a prepared statement cited by Variety that the company’s podcast creators have developed loyal communities that listeners and viewers return to. He said the Amazon alliance gives advertisers another way to connect creator-led media to measurable business results.
The partnership is part of a broader push by Amazon to make its advertising platform a bigger hub for streaming and digital media buys. Variety reported that Amazon has made similar arrangements over the past year with Disney, Roku and Netflix, among other companies.
For advertisers, the pitch is reach and control. Media companies entering demand-side platform partnerships are trying to make more of their programmatic inventory available in one buying system, according to Variety. That can help marketers manage how often the same person sees a commercial and aim ads with more precision.
The deal also points to how podcast advertising is being bundled into the same automated buying pipes that already power much of connected TV and digital video. Red Seat’s inventory includes both audio and video podcasts, giving brands a way to buy across formats as podcast creators keep expanding beyond traditional downloads.
Amazon’s role is as the buying platform, while Red Seat supplies the creator inventory. Variety reported that advertisers using Amazon’s demand-side platform will be able to reach Red Seat’s commercial slots under the new alliance.
The companies did not disclose financial terms in Variety’s report. No launch date beyond the announcement was specified.
This story draws on original reporting from Variety.