Louis Daboussy (editorial director), Benoît Dunaigre (production director) and Lorenzo Benedetti (general manager), co-founders of Paradiso Media. Paradise
Producer Paradiso Media announces a majority stake in the creator of “Heart on the table”. The Les Echos-Le Parisien group leaves Binge Audio’s shareholding.
Change of era for Binge Audio. Seven years after its creation, the producer of original podcasts (The balls on the table, Program B, loves your race…) goes under the leadership of another player in the sector, Paradiso Media. The latter acquired 62% of the capital of the Parisian company, an operation during which he bought the minority shares held since 2018 by the media group Les Echos-Le Parisien.
“Les Echos-Le Parisien allowed Binge Audio to grow and they acquired a skill in the podcast», with the daily news broadcasts Source code And The Story, underlines Joël Ronez, president of the production company. “But we needed a new shareholder from the podcast community to go even further.»
Both Binge Audio and Paradiso suffer from their intermediate size in a sector which includes both small creators and public and private radio stations. This creative industry does not benefit from public aid, and it faced its economic fragility during the Covid-19 crisis. “Everything pushes for the consolidation of professional studios“, continues Joël Ronez. This fundamental movement has already begun with the acquisition in July of the Majelan platform by ETX Studios, the acquisition in September of the producer Nouvelles Listening by the Swedish fund PodX, and with the acquisition in December of 47% of the capital of Louie Media. by the CMI press group (Elle, Marianne, TV 7 Days…).
Become a leader in Europe
By joining together, Paradiso and Binge Audio intend to form the French leader in independent podcasting in terms of audience and turnover, but also “become number one in Europe», explains Lorenzo Benedetti, director of Paradiso. “Our next round of funding, that we have just started [avec un objectif d’une dizaine de millions d’euros, NDLR], aims to take stakes and build a network. We will be able to offer talent a whole range of services, from production assistance to support in marketing and relations with audio platforms, including diversification in publishing and audiovisual.»
These talents could be both podcasters and video content creators wishing to make the leap into audio. This movement is already underway with, in France, the great success of the podcasts of Léna Situations, Hugo Décrypte and Domingo (Pop corn).
Read also“I found an informal link with my community”: when YouTubers embark on the intimate podcast
The group wishes to become essential for advertisers who want to reach an audience of young CSP+ adults. “With this operation, we are reaching a critical size, and we will be able to offer brands more varied types of programs.“, notes Gabrielle Boeri-Charles, general manager of Binge Audio. “We also know how to do video operations for social networks“, adds Lorenzo Benedetti. “And the future network will allow us to monetize content that we do not produce directly.»
Two complementary profiles
The Paradiso and Binge Audio profiles are complementary. The first, founded in 2019, specializes in fiction, youth programs, and the production of original programs for platforms such as Spotify or Audible. It has expanded internationally with an American subsidiary, which accounts for a third of its income, and the adaptation in English and Spanish of its paid offer of DISO children’s podcasts, marketed by Apple Podcast and Spotify.
Read alsoPodcast: the French Paradiso to conquer American listeners
Binge Audio specializes in recurring programs on social issues with a strong progressive focus. According to the ACPM, it brings together 700,000 unique listeners for nearly 2 million monthly plays. Its economic model (2 million euros in revenue in 2021) is mainly based on the production of white label podcasts and its advertising management. Binge Audio has also created its own book publishing house (120,000 sales since 2019) and organizes paid events.
Paradiso has diversified into the audiovisual sector. He is co-producing with CineFrance a feature film adapted from his podcast on autism “In flip flops on top of the Himalayas“. Filming begins this month. The psychological thrillerI’ve got you“, with Camélia Jordana in the main role, is adapted into a TV series by Mediawan.
“Paradiso also knows how to raise funds, and from French investors, which is an important point for us.“, adds Joel Ronez. “This acquisition is the best of both worldssmiles Lorenzo Benedetti. “By joining our forces, we will create a benchmark player.»
SEE ALSO – Australia: 40 years later, the murderer of a woman convicted, thanks to the popularity of a podcast