The news: Satellite radio company SiriusXM is now YouTube’s exclusive audio advertising representative, the two companies announced Wednesday. Starting this fall, advertisers will be able to buy ads against YouTube audio content via SiriusXM Media.

Zooming in: Though the partnership is pitched as audio-first, it crucially includes access to video podcast inventory. YouTube has made an aggressive push into the podcasting space, capitalizing on its position as the top destination for podcasts, sometimes outpacing audio-first platforms like Spotify.

Under the hood: SiriusXM’s Q&A page lays out advertising specifics, including interesting details on the kinds of signals YouTube can tap to suss out user behavior.

One tab reveals four cues the company uses to infer when users are listening to YouTube rather than watching:

• Playing the Trending 20 playlist on YouTube Music
• Listening via smart speaker
• Minimizing video podcasts on web
• Sending a desktop browser to the background

SiriusXM’s angle: SiriusXM has been losing subscribers at a steady drip for several years, dropping from 34,305 in 2022 to 32,927 in 2025, per its earnings releases. Conversely, its advertising revenues have ticked up from $480 million to $491 million in the same period. Partnering with one of the largest global ad platforms in YouTube and managing some of its most in-demand ad inventory could help SiriusXM further make up for subscriber churn—and give it another stable, recurring revenue stream.

But the deal might prove temporary. Much like how Netflix eventually ended its Microsoft ad partnership to take full control of its ad business, YouTube could similarly end the arrangement once it develops its own comparable audio ad tech stack.

Implications for marketers: As both video and audio podcast consumption grows, so too does advertiser interest. SiriusXM’s partnership allows advertisers to tap into YouTube’s buzziest inventory through an intermediary with established audio expertise.

The partnership could benefit both companies beyond the near-term sales. YouTube can leverage SiriusXM’s audio knowledge to develop its own ad tech stack that could help it capture a larger share of the podcast advertising market. Meanwhile, SiriusXM will have greater access to advertisers, increasing the potential to draw more buyers into its sales funnel and hastening its growing dependence on advertising.