Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) has moved to quell concerns about the Australian Podcast Ranker’s relevance, insisting the system remains the market’s single source of truth – even as major publishers continue to fall off the charts.
In a statement to Mediaweek, a CRA spokesperson said, “While participation naturally shifts over time, the market’s need for a single source of truth doesn’t change. That single source of truth is the Australian Podcast Ranker – the country’s only official measurement system, powered by deep collaboration across commercial, independent, and non-commercial publishers. This delivers the granular metrics and demographic insights that give agencies confidence to invest at scale.”
The statement comes as Shameless becomes the latest high-profile podcast brand to disappear from the monthly rankings, following earlier exits by The Mel Robbins Podcast and Casefile True Crime, among others.
Why Shameless has stepped away
Shameless Media confirmed it will no longer appear on the Australian Podcast Ranker, citing changes in how its podcasts are now distributed and measured.
In an Instagram post shared today, the publisher said its growing focus on full-length video podcasts means a significant portion of its audience is no longer captured by the Ranker’s methodology.
The Australian Podcast Ranker measures podcast performance based solely on audio downloads. It does not include video streams, including those on Spotify.
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“Without getting too technical,” the company explained, “there are ‘downloads’ (audio) and streams (video). The Ranker only measures downloads.”
Starting this week, all Thursday episodes of the Shameless Podcast will be available as full-length videos on Spotify, marking a further shift in the publisher’s format strategy – and accelerating its move away from audio-only measurement.
Not an isolated departure
Shameless’ exit follows a series of significant withdrawals from the Ranker over the past year.
In early 2025, Casefile True Crime dropped off the Triton Australian Podcast Ranker after entering an exclusive partnership with Acast covering ad sales, hosting and distribution.
As Acast does not participate in the Triton Digital Podcast Ranker, the long-running chart leader effectively removed itself from the list.
SiriusXM later opted out entirely, pulling a large slate of globally recognised shows – including The Mel Robbins Show, Call Her Daddy and Smartless – from the Australian rankings.
The move was particularly notable given The Mel Robbins Show topped the Australian Podcast Ranker across the first five months of 2025.
Its inclusion had been enabled through SiriusXM’s Australian representation via LiSTNR under a commercial deal with Adswizz.
By June, the show – and the rest of SiriusXM’s portfolio – had vanished from the charts.
Southern Cross Austereo (SCA), which has sold advertising for SiriusXM’s podcast network in Australia since October 2022, has confirmed the commercial relationship remains unchanged.
CRA boss Lizzie Young.
CRA: departures don’t undermine the system
Despite the loss of several high-profile titles, the CRA argues the Ranker continues to reflect the overwhelming majority of Australia’s podcast market.
“The Ranker represents the overwhelming majority of key publishers in Australia – the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), ARN/iHeart, Guardian Media Group, Mamamia, New York Times, Nine, Nova Entertainment, Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), Southern Cross Austereo (LiSTNR), Squiz Media and many others – and this level of industry commitment to unified measurement is unique to Australia. They understand what the market needs: consistent, verified data that advertisers can trust. When you’ve got that level of industry commitment, individual participation shifts don’t change the fundamental value.”
The CRA said it is continuing discussions with Triton Digital as podcast formats evolve, including the rapid growth of video.
“We are also in ongoing discussions with Triton Digital about the needs of the market and are constantly assessing how we deliver the best possible product for Publishers and Clients. This includes reviewing video podcast measurement for inclusion when we find tested, validated, and best-practice approaches. Video is new and moving fast, requiring rigorous, accurate measurement. Podcasting is an incredible industry for consumers and brands. As it evolves, so does our commitment to building the very best third-party verified measurement system that keeps pace with that growth.”
For now, the Australian Podcast Ranker remains an audio-only benchmark – even as the industry increasingly tests the edges of what “podcasting” now means.