Content for new listening habits

The German audio landscape is more diverse than ever: Radio, once a mass medium, is now joined by streaming services and social media. Demand for on-demand offerings continues to grow, and relatively new formats like podcasts are enjoying success. In addition, AI applications are transforming both the production and distribution of audio content. How do industry professionals in Hamburg view these developments?

Online audio is booming

Whether it’s music, podcasts, or audiobooks: The digitization of audio content is considered the key driver of growth and success in the audio industry. According to the Online Audio Monitor 2025, the number of online audio users reached a new high of 53 million: Nearly 76 percent of all people in Germany aged 14 and older use digital audio content at least occasionally, and 69 percent do so at least once a month. And: Once people discover online audio, they usually stick with it. According to OAM 2025, 6 out of 10 users tune in to digital audio formats daily. Most often, they listen to their preferred content via smartphone.

No End in Sight for the Podcast Boom

Podcasts are undoubtedly a key factor in the development of the audio content industry. According to the “ma 2025 Audio II” report by the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Media-Analyse e.V., 49.1 percent of the German-speaking population has listened to podcasts at least once. In the 14- to 49-year-old age group, the figure is as high as 66 percent. Constanze Kainz, head of the podcast department at Die Zeit, also observes a steadily growing upward trend in podcasts. “We’ve been producing podcasts at Die Zeit since 2017. Since then, our division has grown significantly,” says Kainz. What started with three formats has now expanded to 28 different formats that are released episodically. Added to this are major series such as the documentary podcast “White, ” “Irma – The Child from Srebrenica,” and event-driven multi-part series, such as one on Friedrich Merz for the federal election.

Kainz cites the wide range of topics now available and the intimacy that audio can create—unlike , for example, text alone—as key factors in the success of podcasts . “Podcasts allow for humanity; in the best case, listeners of a news podcast feel as though a friend is telling them what’s happening in the world.” This, in turn, builds trust and keeps listeners engaged with the format, according to Kainz.

In addition to a full subscription to ZEIT, there is now a separate podcast subscription that can also be linked to the Spotify and Apple Podcasts platforms. “We want to meet our listeners where they spend most of their time—and that’s on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. So it was a real game-changer when these platforms made it possible to link subscriptions to streaming accounts. Now our subscribers can continue listening to the podcasts on their preferred streaming platforms, and that’s crucial,” Kainz explains the model. At the same time, ZEIT’s development editorial team is continuing to build out its own platform, the ZEIT App. There, users can find additional information and supplementary materials such as photos and visual content.

This development aligns with the industry-wide assessment: the potential of podcast formats is far from exhausted. For example, the growing number of video podcasts is making moving images increasingly important even for this originally audio-centric format. Live events bring hosts and listeners closer together, thereby strengthening their connection. Additionally, podcasts benefit from cross-format communication strategies. For instance , ZEIT’s new video podcast“ ,” titled “Nur eine Frage,” is released alongside a newsletter and supported by a social media strategy.

To remain successful with listeners and in the market, curiosity and creativity are therefore essential. For Kainz, there’s no question about it: “When we talk about AI, video podcasts, or major series, it really hits me just how much more is actually on the way. We’re not even at the peak yet, and I’m looking forward to helping shape the future of the industry.”

Streaming Instead of Bookshelves: Audiobooks Continue to Grow

Colin Hauer, managing director of Hörbuch Hamburg Verlag, is also optimistic about the future of his industry. The trend toward audiobooks and podcasts does not surprise him: “46 percent of all Germans listened to audiobooks, radio plays, and podcasts last year, representing a 10 percent increase compared to the previous year. Hörbuch Hamburg’s revenue alone grew by 15 percent from 2023 to 2024,” Hauer explains. Other market data also shows that audiobooks are on solid ground as an online audio offering. According to the OAM report, nearly 27 percent of users regularly choose to listen to an audiobook online. Figures from Spotify also confirm the lively interest in audiobooks: nearly a quarter (24 percent) of audiobook fans on Spotify use this medium at least several times a week.

For Hauer, the challenge for the audiobook industry lies primarily in attracting new listeners and less in competing for or poaching target audiences. A key term in this context is “interface.” On the one hand, the audiobook business is already in an interface position with book publishers. Licenses are purchased from them, and release dates are coordinated jointly. This is because, to maximize the visibility of shared titles, audiobooks published by Hörbuch Hamburg Verlag generally appear simultaneously with the original book.

On the other hand, in a technical sense, interfaces play a crucial role in keeping pace with the rapid pace of transformation in the online audio industry. The audiobook business now takes place almost entirely digitally, with corresponding implications for distribution and marketing. “The shift from ownership to access—almost comparable to the music industry—determines how we reach our target audiences,” says Hauer. This is made possible by placing the audiobooks not only on established streaming platforms such as Audible, BookBeat, Nextory, and Storytel. Hauer also observes: “Music platforms like Spotify have now decided to take the audiobook market more seriously and create a dedicated offering.” Since podcasts are now also part of Spotify’s established lineup, this development offers the opportunity to get long-time podcast fans excited about the audiobook format and thus reach more users.

As listener numbers grow, the requirements for audiobook accessibility become more complex. Hauer believes the industry is well-positioned for this: various subscription models, download-to-own options, and increasingly streaming services offer audiobook enthusiasts a wide range of access points. However, Hauer also considers it important not to shift Hamburg Hörbuch Verlag’s offerings entirely to digital platforms. “Of course, our audiobooks are available on all platforms. But we also want to keep target groups in mind who don’t have access to digital media—for example, by offering select physical editions where it makes sense,” he explains, outlining the publisher’s approach. For Colin Hauer, there is no question that the audiobook industry will continue to evolve through further technological leaps. But he is certain: “With compelling audio content, the best stories, voices, and productions, we will continue to inspire many people to enjoy audiobooks in the future.”

From Viral Hit to the Charts: TikTok and Music Streaming

In the realm of online audio services, music streaming is undoubtedly leading the way. According to the OAM 2025, nearly 67 percent of users of digital audio services listen to music. Furthermore, music streaming continues to show the highest growth in listeners—unlike other formats, this trend extends across all age groups. It is fascinating to observe that this growth is not generated solely by the core offerings of established platforms like Spotify. Rather, other platforms and collaborations also play a significant role in the development of music streaming. This undoubtedly includes TikTok and its partnership with Spotify.

By the end of 2025, Michael Kümmerle had successfully driven this development forward as Global Head of Music Partnership Development at TikTok. He knows: “The way we listen to music and the way we discover music has fundamentally changed. Nowadays, the path to many chart successes begins on TikTok. The community decides which songs are popular, get shared, and thereby reach the top of the charts.” TikTok’s music chart analysis shows that in 2024, more than one in three hits at the top of the German singles charts had previously gone viral on TikTok.

TikTok does not aim to compete with music streaming platforms: “TikTok is a platform for music discovery and promotion, (…) not a full-fledged streaming service.” However, anyone who discovers their new favorite music should then have an easy way to listen to it in full on their preferred streaming service at their leisure. To this end, TikTok has created its own integration and partnered with music streaming services. The “+ to Music” integration provides users with an “Add Song” button in videos. With a single click, they can then save the song to their streaming service. Almost all providers are now on board, including Apple Music, Spotify, and Deezer. This has been well-received: Last year, about a billion songs were saved through this feature. Kümmerle is certain: All market participants benefit from this strategy, as it allows more tracks to break through and become hits.

Unlike digital streaming services, however, TikTok is also developing additional opportunities for artists. The recently launched all-in-one music platform “SoundOn” is designed to enable artists to expand their reach on TikTok, promote their music, and distribute it. It’s not out of the question that this will also lead to an even more diverse range of music on streaming services in the future.

Audio Meets AI

At the same time, AI applications are becoming increasingly sophisticated. This presents artists, producers, distributors, and marketers alike with the challenge of shaping the AI-driven transformation. AI applications now offer more than just functional support such as automatic transcriptions, translations, and subtitling; they automatically summarize content or enable personalized recommendations. They can also clone voices, generate entire podcasts or music tracks, and read aloud audiobooks. While this can streamline production processes in many areas, it also raises the question: How should we handle content generated entirely by AI?

Colin Hauer, Constanze Kainz, and Michael Kümmerle clearly side with the creatives. For Hauer, having audiobooks narrated by “real” voices is “the only sensible approach, not just morally but also economically.” Kainz sees human voices as the strength of podcasts and considers them indispensable to the format’s success: “In many areas, AI cannot replace us. Podcasts thrive on being human and authentic.” According to Kümmerle, TikTok has been automatically labeling AI-generated content since May 2024 as soon as it is uploaded. To do this, TikTok uses the Content Credentials technology from the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA).

This transparency is also essential for maintaining credibility with listeners. According to the OAM 2025, acceptance of AI-generated audio content averages only about 23 percent and has actually declined compared to the previous year. Less than 7 percent of respondents find AI-generated podcasts “completely acceptable”; for music, the figure is only around 11 percent, and a minority of just over 6 percent has no objections to cloned voices of well-known figures. Users, on the other hand, are more open to functional AI elements such as translations, subtitles, and personalization. About 4 in 10 respondents find these helpful or even very helpful.

At this point, the perspectives of the listeners converge once again with those of Constanze Kainz and Colin Hauer. They view functional AI applications as important and valuable tools for improving the quality of their respective online audio offerings, producing them efficiently, and tailoring them as closely as possible to the needs and preferences of listeners. Kainz sees a major advantage, for example, in the area of podcast production: “If we receive a poor recording, for instance, we use applications that filter out the noise and enhance the voice.” At Hörbuch Hamburg, too, AI is currently being used primarily to support creative processes, streamline administration, and optimize technical workflows. In the production department, Hauer, like Kainz, finds AI applications helpful and reports: “For our audiobook production, for example, we’ve developed our own tools to streamline the research for time-consuming pronunciation lists or as an additional safety net for proofreading processes, so we can more effectively avoid duplicates and other errors.”

There is agreement that the development of AI must be closely monitored, and that we must continually explore which options AI offers for the future, which of these should be implemented, and which should be avoided despite technical feasibility. This exploration sometimes involves experimentation. ZEIT is breaking new groundin its podcast division , Kainz reports.“For example, weused AI to translate the ‘Alles gesagt?’ episode with David Remnick into German. However, we didn’t use AI voices or voice actors, but rather‘AI-cloned voices.’ The result: David Remnick speaks fluent German in the episode—in his own voice.”

Sources:

• https://www.online-audio-monitor.de/wp-content/uploads/Bericht-OAM_2025.pdf
• https://www.agma-mmc.de/presse/pressemitteilungen/pressearchiv/pressemitteilung/ma-2025-audio-ii-frische-daten-fuer-den-audiowerbemarkt?utm_source=copilot.com
• https://spotify_presse.prowly.com/429448-sechs-monate-nach-dem-start-die-spotify-premium-horbuch-experience-wachst-besonders-beliebt-bei-jungen-horerinnen
• https://newsroom.tiktok.com/tiktok-musik-charts-analyse-2025?lang=de-DE
• https://newsroom.tiktok.com/tiktok-ki-inhalte-transparenz-update?lang=de-DE