Does iTunes Cache our Files?

[mackymacky]

For some reason, we are not seeing any increase in our number of "subscribers" since being listed on iTunes.com.

We are wondering if they are cache-ing our files? if so...how would we get information on how many people are listening to our podcasts via iTunes?

Has anyone else experienced this?

Thanks for your feedback

-mackymacky

[docsnavely]

i wish they cached files.....

it's not always guaranteed that your subscriber base will jump by leaps and bounds either......

what is your show about? it might very well be buried at the bottom of the topic you are listed in....

best thing to do is advertise, advertise, advertise

[radiofilibuster]

Yeah, a listing on iTunes does not automatically draw listeners. Consider they currently have thousands of podcasts listed, just like the higher traffic podcast directories. Unless you use these listings in conjunction with a differentiation strategy, you're playing the (overwhelming) odds just like everyone else. :wink:

[cpjolicoeur]

i believe they do some minimal cache of the top 100 podcasts according to their listing.

[jeffoest]

Also, don't forget there are lots of good new podcasts arriving on the scene all the time and you are competing with these podcasts. If your numbers are the same pre- and post- iTunes, one could argue that you doing alright in that you are replacing all those folks that you are losing to all the other new and good content out there with new subscribers to your show.

[dcolanduno]

They have stated that they cache.

And no one knows how much, or when, or...

I only go by my 'known' stats for now, someone said to 'add 20-40%' for Apple caching, seems too high.

[mackymacky]

Add 20% to 40% to our overall numbers?

One more question...is there any way to tell how many people are actually listening to a particular podcast - our numbers are too consistant - we have 7 shows and each say the file has been pulled 1,200 times - sounds too good to be true

Are the old shows being recounted?

m

[docsnavely]

your stats should accumulate as time goes on. the longer that file stays on your servers, the more downloads it will have.

people often download a whole string of episodes when they first subscribe. depending on how many shows you have, the numbers will dwindle as your show numbers go up.

this is just my amateur outlook on this.....

[docsnavely]

well, derek, you were right.

I guess the proof is that i got an email from aplle stating....





Dear Podcast Owner

An error was encountered in your Podcast feed [ http://feeds.feedburner.com/JoshInJapan ] preventing update. We will not be able to update the directory from your feed until this error is resolved:

Error parsing feed: Invalid XML


Sincerely,

The iTunes Music Store Team



my feed is still broken..... my hosting service is working on it now, but yet my listing is still in itunes with artwork and all.... search "japan", and you'll see.

very interesting.

[podcastshuffle]

Here's what I think Apple does...

All the feed data is cached online along with the art and a minute and 30 seconds of each podcast. So that when you see sometihing in the music store it is being servered from their network. If you listen to someting from the podcast details page in iTunes you're listening to something cached.

Once a user is subscribed to a feed, the feedcatcher part of iTunes comminicates directly with your server. So if your feed is changed or busted or different, the user gets that and not what Apple has online.

Jeff

[Dailysonic_Adam]

When iTunes first lauched, we suspected our MP3s and RSS feed of being cached. We used our dyn-syn technology to test out our theory and we were right... our show WAS being cached. iTunes has since addressed this problem. Most shows are not being cached. After you subscribe, get info on the podcast and look at the location of your feed... that should tell you... also, see this post http://dailysonic.com/blog/itunes-49-issues/

[docsnavely]

i remember earlier though that my feed broke once, and my artwork was lost, and i had one of those broken link pictures for my art.....

scared the hell out of me!