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UTA invests in podcasting start-up ART19

United Talent joins five other investors in the $7.5m funding round, which podcast hoster/ad platform ART19 will put towards 'greatly accelerating product development'

By IQ on 24 Aug 2017

Podcast set-up, ART19 investment

image © Patrick Breitenbach

United Talent Agency (UTA) and VC firm DCM Ventures have invested in ART19, a podcasting tech company which has raised US$7.5 million in a new funding round.

DCM, which has been rapidly buying up ticketing companies in China, and booking powerhouse UTA join German conglomerate Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (the co-lead investor with DCM), Array Ventures, software developer Gallo Digital and entrepreneur Zach Coelius in the series-A investment, which DCM’s Jason Krikorian recognises ART19’s having “taken the [podcasting] space by storm”.

Arizona-based ART19, which describes itself as the “fastest-growing provider of podcast hosting, distribution and ad-serving technology”, helps brands and media clients, including iHeartMedia, The New York Times and Vox Media, to target and connect with podcast listeners. It anticipates growing revenue by 300% in 2017.

“There are now more people listening to podcasts in the US than using Twitter”

“There are now more people listening to podcasts in the US than using Twitter,” comments Sean Carr, the company’s founder and CEO. “Our mission is to offer content creators and advertisers tools that help monetisation of the medium catch up with that scale. This capital will enable us to greatly accelerate product development and continue supporting revenue growth for our customers.”

Krikorian adds: “Audio has extraordinary global reach, and if there’s one thing we know about consumers, it’s that they want their content on demand. This bodes well for the future of podcasting. ART19 has taken the space by storm and we’re thrilled to be working with them as the medium continues to mature here and abroad.”

 


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