Acast, the global powerhouse of podcasting, and Barometer, the leading third-party brand suitability and contextual targeting solution for podcasts, have launched the podcast industry’s first-of-its-kind integration, enabling pre-bid targeting at the episode level. Now live across Acast’s entire inventory, this partnership allows brands to tap into narrative influence at scale, from newly published episodes analyzed in real-time to the full back catalog. The integration solves a major advertiser pain point by giving brands automated, granular control over where their ads appear before a buy is made.

This advanced integration marks a major evolution in the partnership. Previously, the collaboration enabled brand-suitable media buying through pre-planning; now, it goes further by pre-vetting suitability on an episodic level for programmatic activation, even before episodes are released. This delivers unprecedented confidence for advertisers, allowing campaigns to scale while actively managing risk. Initial campaigns tested on the new integration reported a 100% alignment with the advertiser’s brand standard profile at the episodic level.

Lauren Russo, EVP, Managing Partner, Innovation and Performance Audio Horizon Media, reflected: “Barometer’s ad-tech brand safety innovation has revolutionized our approach to podcast advertising. Through strategic partnerships with leading podcast companies like Acast, brands have greater confidence in expanding their tactical mix to include RON environments. Barometer’s episode-level targeting and back-catalog processing capabilities are truly game-changing. They empower agencies and brands to curate content from publishers at scale, significantly extending their reach. This level of precision and control is unparalleled, allowing us to handpick content that aligns perfectly with brand values and campaign objectives.”

The integration operates by channeling every Acast podcast episode through Barometer’s AI-driven brand safety, suitability, and contextual targeting tools the moment it is uploaded. This real-time process scores each show against multiple metrics, including IAB categories and Barometer’s proprietary long-form audio definitions, allowing brands to set their own risk and contextual parameters directly in the programmatic bidding process.

Tamara Nelson, Cofounder and CEO of Barometer, added: “It has been a privilege to work with the Acast team on the integration, expanding our partnership to empower advertisers all around the world. I’m over the moon about the wins the integration has already delivered for precision in both direct and programmatic campaigns.”

Valerie Reimer, VP Adtech & Product Partnerships, Acast, added: “Advertisers want authenticity without risk. With Barometer’s episodic integration live across Acast, brands can align their standards at the episode level before a campaign even runs—pre-bid, third-party verified, and measurable. It’s fast, flexible, and built for the realities of today’s buying.”

To learn more about how you can begin leveraging these tools in your next campaign with Acast, please reach out to sales@acast.com or sales@thebarometer.co.

This is a press release which we link to from Podnews, our daily newsletter about podcasting and on-demand. We may make small edits for editorial reasons.