“The recording and on-demand broadcasting of audio, is not just for those who can’t make it on the day”, he explains. “Now people are going to conferences to meet and greet other people and to network, not necessarily to attend the speeches.” Read more about it on the Talking Voices Ireland blog.

Rob’s twice-monthly, 30 minute podcast is described as ‘an insight into the eclectic world of Rob da Bank, the Radio 1 DJ and Sunday Best supremo’. Catch up on the Bestival with live tracks from XX Teens, Candie Payne and the beatboxing guru Beardyman, enter the quest to find the secrets of the Women’s Institutes Victoria sponge or simply relax to the latest ‘Post-Bestival Chill’ podcast.

Talking Voices has been working with Rob da Bank and his Sunday Best Podcast since April 2007.

London, UK; Melbourne, Australia.
September 28th 2007

John Cleese to release new video series in conjunction with The Podcast Network.

British actor, writer and comedian John Cleese is to release Headcast, a series of online videos, which he describes as “some humorous, some more thoughtful, giving me a chance to sound off in my old age.”

A free version will be made available over the next few months on The Podcast Network, which John says is “rather good, run by Australians, and none the worse for that.”

A premium version of the Headcast will also be made available.

John’s free podcast, produced by UK new media company Funk, has achieved close to 500,000 downloads in 2007.

Dean Whitbread from Funk said:

“John is really forward-looking when it comes to technology. He got into video early and he reaped the benefits. He’s been investing in online media for some years now, and when we started to produce podcasts for him in 2005, we saw a huge take up from the online audience.

John’s podcast has been free since we started, and we’re going to maintain that, but its success to date means we can now explore other options, including more video, and adding premium content.

The Headcast is another example of John embracing new technologies to further his creativity – and although he’s well known for being very funny, this gives him the option to do whatever he wants to do and take it wherever he wants to go.”

Cameron Reilly from The Podcast Network said:

“Having a living legend like John Cleese joining The Podcast Network’s growing roster of talent is a coup for the business and a personal thrill.

“Having grown up watching and listening to John, I am extremely pleased that he will be contributing his new material to our site. I have been a fan of his podcasts over the last year and am excited about bringing the Headcast to a wider international audience. Having someone of John’s caliber producing podcasts is another sign of the increasing legitimacy of the medium.”

The Podcast Network is an privately owned media company in Australia with over 80 audio and video podcasts in production and a monthly international audience of over half a million people.

Funk is a creative new media company based in London and Brighton, UK, comprised of producers Mark Crook and Dean Whitbread. Funk is a part of social media business Talking Voices.

“It has been an interesting first venture into podcasting for the bank and I’m sure it’s a channel we will continue to grow” commented Martin O’Leary of Rabobank.

In Ireland Talking Voices has also recently completed podcasts for Enterprise Ireland eBusiness Unit and the Irish Internet Associations annual conference.

There are two types of Internet users, those that use RSS and those that don’t. This video is for the people who could save time using RSS, but don’t know where to start.

The study reveals that although the 18-24 year old share of the iTunes audiences represents 29%, it appears that people between 35-54 represent about 50% of the podcasting audience and are also more likely than average to download podcasts.

“The comScore study reveals significant advertising opportunities among several consumer segments,” said Nick Tabbal, comScore senior vice president of media and entertainment solutions. “While the conventional wisdom says that only young, tech-savvy consumers are downloading and listening to podcasts, there is also a sizable market among 35-54 year olds, indicating that the audience is broader than previously thought.”

What is clear from the report is that the consumption of podcasts increases with both income and education. In fact, individuals in households making at least $100,000 were 28% more likely than average to download podcasts.

“Since many of the top podcasts are in the educational and business genres, it’s not surprising that podcasts today appeal to the more educated and higher-income consumer segments,” added Mr. Tabbal. “Because these core audiences represent highly desirable consumer segments, it’s probably just a matter of time before significant advertising dollars begin to flow toward this medium.”

All tracks are no-DRM and are full length. Read more.

BECTU is the Broadcasting, Entertainment and Cinematograph and Theatre Union.

Speeches covered various topics including video content for mobile phones, digital distribution of films and of course podcasting.

Listen to Dean’s speech: