Vodcasts were once an adjunct to the main podcast action or a marketing tool for a show spin off, but now visuals are moving front and centre. Pippa Considine reports
The demand for visualised podcasts is exploding. Podcast platforms have pivoted to video. Some podcasts create their own ecosystem, but established TV platforms are also buying into a lower cost medium to extend their own IP. Vodcasts are now fixed in the repertoire of both digital natives and traditional TV indies.
YouTube is the focus of vodcast viewing. The platform had more than one billion monthly active viewers of podcast content in 2025. Spotify, which now hosts more than 500,000 video podcast shows, saw video podcast consumption increase by more than 50 per cent over the past year. And Apple is introducing a new integrated video podcast experience to its Podcast app.
Creatively, podcasts are firmly on the map. This year’s Golden Globes recognised the medium.
Many of the most popular vodcast titles in the UK are made in the US. But the UK has its own podcast powerhouses. Goalhanger, co-founded by footballing legend Gary Lineker, originally set up for TV production, is the most celebrated.
As vodcasts, pods are finding their way onto TV platforms. In the streamer world, Netflix recently tied with Spotify to bring sports, culture, lifestyle and true crime vodcast titles to the streamer.
UK broadcasters are signing up. Channel 4 has a range of original vodcast titles, including current affairs pods from Ben Zand and Stacey Dooley. The BBC has a portfolio of video podcasts on BBC iPlayer, including The Traitors: Uncloaked. Meanwhile, Channel 5 started its move into original vodcasts this year with series from Spirit Studios.
Audio podcasts have been a good earner for some indies. At Spirit Studios, which has been making pods for nine years, the biggest title brought in almost seven figures a year, says Spirit creative director and co-founder Matt Campion.
Monetising in the digital world is notoriously tricky, but income from pods on Spotify has been worthwhile. And Spotify has been quick to offer video. However, viewers, especially younger viewers, have a YouTube habit, where direct revenues for creators are lower.
Subscriber and advertiser revenues make the difference. And networks such as Acast will match advertisers with vodcasts.
Pippa Considine
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