Participating podcasts will be paid on a “pay-per-play” basis for each ad-free podcast episode played on the faidr audio Superapp

Episode payments mimic the song play model and are expected to be greater than the ad revenue received per episode

Company details Seamless Play and Forward+ as two key features of its Enhanced Podcasts suite, which will be released in faidr later this year

BOULDER, CO - (NewMediaWire) - March 14, 2024 -  Auddia Inc. (NASDAQ:AUUD) (NASDAQ:AUUDW) (“Auddia” or the “Company”), a proprietary AI platform for audio identification and classification and related technologies, reinventing how consumers engage with AM/FM radio, podcasts, and other audio content, today announced its new pay-per-play beta program for podcasters and networks.

The program will treat podcast plays and downloads similar to streaming music, where content owners receive a direct payment based on how many streams they receive.

“For many podcasters, the economics are simply broken,” said Michael Lawless, CEO of Auddia.  “Ad revenues can be inconsistent, and unlike the top shows out there, you have the vast majority of podcasts, even seemingly popular ones, making just enough to survive.  Meanwhile, ad networks, ad servers and ad salespeople are taking a significant chunk of the gross revenue from podcast ads.  We believe the real value is in the creative work of the podcasters, and the economics should reflect this. By paying creators directly for each play, they keep a much bigger portion of the revenue generated from their material.”

The program targets a specific segment of podcast listeners: listeners that skip the majority of ads and refuse to subscribe to exclusive or ad-free feeds at the show or network level. Partners in Auddia’s pay-per-play program will have their episodes downloaded in full, with ads included, but listeners will be given controls that allow them to fast forward through ad breaks automatically, requiring no technological heavy lifting on the podcaster’s end. When subscribers play a partner’s episode, Auddia tracks the activity and delivers a payment based on the agreed-upon per-play rate, which is based on the podcast’s current revenue-per-play and average CPM.

“Our aim is to tap into higher margins and enable greater efficiencies beyond the current economics of podcasting,” said Theo Romeo, Auddia’s Chief Product Marketing Officer. “Podcasts have, by and large, figured out how to monetize their superfans. The ad markets fluctuate, though they still provide a ton of value. We think there is more economic potential for most podcasters, and this beta program aims to expose meaningful upside for content creators, especially at scale.”

Partner podcast episodes will be delivered through Auddia’s Seamless Play technology, leveraging the Company’s AI and NLP technologies for segment-identification and ad-avoidance. Users will be treated to episodes where the app fast forwards through ad breaks  automatically, rather than requiring the end user to manually fast forward. Each play or download will be logged, and partners will be compensated at an agreed-upon rate on a monthly basis.

Alongside the Seamless Play functionality, Auddia will also release new seek forward functionality called Forward+. Using the Company’s patented segment-identification technology, Forward+ will allow users to fully fast forward to the next identified segment of content. This functionality will be launched in faidr in the next major release this year as a beta test. The Company is working to increase the accuracy and number of separate segments the model can identify per episode as it simultaneously develops the APIs required to offer the features to other players via a SaaS model.

The Company is in talks with a number of potential partners and hopes to announce the first group of pay-per-play beta participants in the coming weeks.

About Auddia Inc.

Auddia, through its proprietary AI platform for audio identification and classification and related technologies, is reinventing how consumers engage with AM/FM radio, podcasts, and other audio content. Auddia’s flagship audio superapp, called faidr, brings two industry firsts to the audio-streaming landscape: subscription-based, ad-free listening on any AM/FM radio station and podcasts with interactive digital feeds that support deeper stories and open untapped revenue streams to podcasters. faidr also delivers exclusive content and playlists, and showcases exciting new artists, hand-picked by curators and DJs. Both differentiated offerings address large and rapidly growing audiences with strong purchase intent. For more information, visit: www.auddia.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 about the Company's current expectations about future results, performance, prospects and opportunities. Statements that are not historical facts, such as "anticipates," "believes" and "expects" or similar expressions, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on the current plans and expectations of management and are subject to a number of uncertainties and risks that could significantly affect the Company's current plans and expectations, as well as future results of operations and financial condition. These and other risks and uncertainties are discussed more fully in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Readers are encouraged to review the section titled "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, as well as other disclosures contained in the Annual Report and subsequent filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are made as of this date and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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