Bauer Media Advertising MD Simon Kilby: We’re in a world that needs to start supporting trusted environments
The Future of Audio: In Focus
Following two recent deals that benefit audio advertisers, Bauer Media Advertising MD, Simon Kilby, presents the case for audio as a trusted medium.
Growing audiences and digital diversification in audio are putting it in the spotlight. But as Simon Kilby, MD at Bauer Media Advertising, argues, the increasing emphasis on the need for trusted media will be pivotal in bringing audio front and centre.
Kilby, who has been at Bauer for over a decade, draws on the evolving perception of audio and the numerous opportunities digitalisation has brought and continues to bring.
He talks exclusively to The Media Leader in the wake of two Bauer Media deals with audio advertising companies, AdsWizz Inc., and the Sport Social Podcast Network. Both deals provide greater scale to the company’s digital advertising platform audioXi, which launched in the UK last March. The deals also expand Bauer’s podcast representation to nearly 4,000 shows across major genres.
Through the agreement with AdsWizz, audioXi will become the exclusive sales representative for advertising on the SiriusXM Podcast Network in the UK.
Meanwhile, the partnership with Sport Social expands audioXi’s content offering with broader sports coverage, providing advertisers with access to sports fans across football, Formula 1, cricket, rugby, and golf.
Fellow market giant, Global, also announced earlier this month that it had taken a majority stake in sports media YouTube group The Overlap, which it will support by hosting and distributing content and by providing data insights and ad sales through its digital ad exchange (DAX).
This continued expansion of digital products is what Kilby sees as vital to making audio more attractive and better positioned to be a trusted all-rounder.
He says: “2026 will be the year that we see greater emphasis on trust and where you’re spending your money in a responsible way — it will start to have an impact.
“The success audio has had as a trusted medium over the last 10 — five years specifically means it has got a really positive future.”
Audio’s role in the media mix
This growth in audience and the diverse ways advertisers can reach them is why, for Kilby, audio will play a “bigger and bigger part in the media mix.”
The numbers don’t lie — in the last six years, weekly listeners to commercial audio have grown by 5.3m.
Kilby points to the rise of digital audio and smart speakers as catalysts for the dynamic shift in listening habits and the medium’s growth.
He says: “It’s a new audience that’s delivered in a more diverse way in terms of delivery. Now you have podcasts, live radio, and on-demand content.
“There has also been a significant shift to audio becoming a 360 product as well. Obviously, you’ve got visualisation, social video, and video podcasts.
“So the whole area has really changed the perception of audio in the market.”
Despite progress, Kilby maintains that audio does not have its fair share of the pie. He says: “It’s still massively underrepresented in terms of spend.
“If you look at the headline numbers, about 45m people listen to audio every week. We get 7% of ad spend, 46m people are on social, and it gets 20%.”
Kilby links this back to trust and outlines his view that it’s not just an audio problem but an industry-wide dilemma primarily affecting trusted platforms.
Digital in focus
Nearly a year after Bauer Media sold its stake in digital audio marketplace Octave to News UK and ventured into the market with its own product, audio’s deepening descent into the digital landscape excites Kilby — but he warns that when it comes to measurement and outcomes, awareness is needed.
“I think audioXi, along with other aspects of radio audio, represents a move into digital audio, which is a massive opportunity for the whole industry, as well as Bauer, because it allows us to compete more against the platforms in a world of measurement and outcome-based advertising,” says Kilby.
“I also think we need to be careful about just heading down that route because you’re heading onto the territory of platforms.
“It feels to me at the moment that they’re kind of, in terms of measurement and outcomes-based advertising, they’re sort of writing the rules and refereeing the game a bit at the moment, which I think is dangerous.”
Despite caution, diversification into digital audio, such as podcasts and audioXi, will remain part of Bauer’s business focus.
As a business, Kilby reveals that Bauer will work to find “new innovative ways” to enter the market with advertising products.
He continues: “I still think what we need to do as a business and industry is spread the word more on what has changed.
“We’re digitally focused; nearly a third of our traditional radio listening hours are now delivered on a connected platform. So we just have to keep reiterating the message to get it across to the clients and agencies.”
Data is becoming more defining
Data is increasingly becoming the delineator in the digital audio world.
Kilby highlights the advantage of having access to data across Bauer’s audio, publishing, and OOH estates, but also underscores the need to unify this data across the spectrum.
“Our focus as we think about how we bring together our commercial proposition across all of those platforms this year, is that publishing has a rich scene of data in terms of contextual and the vast range of websites that we have,” adds Kilby.
“We also have a huge amount in audio as well, that’s actually how we not only increase the amount of data that we have, but also how we utilise it across all of our platforms is going to be our big challenge this year, and it’s also a huge opportunity for us.”
Bauer launched audioXi Moment last October, which combines user data from mobile gaming, meditation, and brain-training apps with its first-party data, enabling advertisers to target listeners based on “in the moment insight.”
Kilby explains that this data helps build insight into specific moments across the day, such as commute time, mealtimes, or even exercise. He adds: “We’ll be working really hard this year on how we can improve the quality of our data, then critically how we utilise it across all areas for Bauer.”
Video podcasts: ‘An evolution of the market’
One area in particular that is accelerating is podcasts, and more recently, video podcasts.
Despite the buzz, Kilby describes the market as “still quite a nascent part”, explaining how only in the last five years ad spend started to catch up, arguably reflective of growing audiences.
Speaking to the progression towards video podcasts, Kilby marvels at how “it’s still evolving really quickly,”
Regarding Bauer’s video podcast strategy, Kilby explains that it is “absolutely committed to visualisation.”
The opportunity to create more comprehensive campaigns that offer advertisers more options, whether through social video or video podcasts, is a clear motivator.
Touching on speculation of whether video means the end of audio-only products, Kilby is unperturbed. He says, “There will be an absolute market if people want to consume audio as an audio-only product. But as a major owner, we need to make sure we’re moving into that area as well as monetising our podcasts through video as well.
“I think that to me, that’s just an evolution of the market.”
A challenge and an opportunity?
For Kilby, the challenge ahead also represents an equal opportunity.
It will centre around “making the case why audio deserves a higher share of advertiser budget.”
Kilby points to growing audiences, underrepresentation in ad spend, and the increasing need to invest in trusted, premium media environments.
The tide is turning in this direction, with the pendulum moving back toward brand building and reliable, safe platforms.
He concludes: “We are a trusted platform in a world that really needs to start supporting trusted environments.”