iHeartMedia Posts Quarterly Financial Results Driven by Podcasts and Digital Media

Photo Credit: iHeartMedia, Inc.

iHeartMedia saw revenue increase by 8% in Q2 compared to the same quarter last year, thanks to digital audio led by podcasting.Podcasts drove revenue by 8% in iHeartMedia’s second quarter, compared to the same quarter in 2023, reaching $104.5 million. The company’s overall revenue in the digital audio group, including podcasting, rose 10%, reaching $286 million.

Altogether, the group propelled revenue growth for the company, which saw its second quarter revenue increased overall by 1% to $929 million. This is still slightly above its guidance of maintaining a decidedly flat trajectory.

iHeartMedia’s multiplatform revenue, which includes broadcast radio networks and events business, fell by $20 million (3.4%), due to a decrease in broadcast advertising amid “uncertain market conditions.” The broadcasting giant saw an operating loss of $910 million, compared to the same quarter last year, in which it reported an operating loss of $897 million.“Our second quarter results mark the first quarter that our consolidated revenues increased year-over-year since Q4 2022. We continue to see strong momentum in our podcast business, our Digital ex. Podcast business, and have seen sequential improvement of our Multiplatform Group’s year-over-year revenue performance,” said Bob Pittman, Chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia, Inc.

“This performance is built on iHeartMedia’s strong and unparalleled audience and demonstrates the progress we are making in maximizing the monetization of it,” Pittman continued.

Rich Bressler, President, COO, and CFO of iHeartMedia, Inc., concluded: “Our full year 2024 political revenues are currently pacing approximately 20% higher than the last presidential election cycle, which gives us confidence that this will be a record political year for us, and we expect to see a significant year-over-year improvement in our full year Adjusted EBITDA performance.”

“We continue to see signs of improvement throughout our business and the broader advertising marketplace, and our second quarter 2024 results were in line with, and in the cases of revenue, slightly above guidance,” Bressler asserted. “Our high-growth Digital Audio Group revenues were up 10% year-over-year and represented 31% of our company’s revenues.”