New York-based media monetization company Mission Media has introduced a “Quality Score” methodology within its Content Hub platform, intended to help advertisers and agencies evaluate podcast inventory.

The Quality Score classifies podcast inventory into three tiers (Premium, Long-tail, or Unverified) based on a combination of signals tracked over time. Those signals include total audience size and downloads, total ad slots, avails, and requested ad impressions, Apple listener ratings, total listener reviews, and publishing and content recency. Each show also goes through Mission Media’s ongoing invalid traffic (IVT) verification process to confirm it reaches real listeners.

“For too long, terms like ‘premium’ and ‘long tail’ have been defined by perception, scale, or who owns the inventory,” said David Krulewich, CEO of Mission Media, in a press release. “What’s been missing is an objective measure of how audiences actually engage and how publishers protect those trusted relationships through finite ad allotments.” Krulewich said the Quality Score applies “a consistent, mathematical equation” to classify inventory, and argued that premium status “shouldn’t be a designation reserved for large media conglomerates.”

The feature builds on Content Hub, which Mission Media launched in June to consolidate podcast discovery, audience analysis, pricing visibility, and campaign activation into one platform. At launch, the company said Content Hub gave buyers access to more than 300,000 shows, 116 million listeners, 80,000 audience segments, and 200 content categories. The company now describes Content Hub’s inventory as covering more than 500,000 podcast feeds, 400 audience segments, and 600 content categories.

Alex Ham, Mission Media’s Director of Ad Operations and Applied AI, said the company verifies inventory and evaluates engagement signals to determine whether a show is active and legitimate, and framed the Quality Score as consolidating that work into “a clear, consistent measure.”

The Quality Score is available now within Content Hub. Mission Media said it has delivered more than one billion ad impressions and generated millions in revenue for creators and media partners.

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