Key Financial Data
- Q2 Total revenue: $977.2 million (+4.7% year-over)
- Revenue excluding political advertising: $959.5 million (+3.5%)
- Political advertising revenue: $17.7 million, up from $6.2 million
- Operating income: $35.5 million (+0.4%)
- Net loss: $82.5 million, compared with a net loss of $84.0 million
- Multiplatform Group revenue: $535.7 million (-1.6%)
- Digital Audio Group revenue: $364.1 million (+12.4%)
- Podcast revenue: $162.1 million (+20.7%)
- Audio & Media Services Group revenue: $80.5 million (+18.8%)
- Total debt: $5.04 billion
- Read more Q2 2026 media earnings coverage | iHeart coverage
Radio broadcaster iHeartMedia was able to narrow its financial loss during the second quarter (Q2) of the year as new partnerships with streaming video platforms like Netflix began to take shape.
The company posted revenue of $977.2 million for the quarter ended June 30, up from $933.7 million in the same period last year. Net loss narrowed slightly to $82.5 million, compared with a net loss of $83.5 million in the prior-year quarter.
Operating income was $35.5 million, essentially flat with $35.4 million one year earlier. The company did not record an impairment charge in the quarter, compared with a $2.6 million impairment charge in the second quarter of 2025. Expenses were slightly higher, while a $1.6 million loss on investments added pressure to results.
The company’s Multiplatform Group business unit remained the largest, led primarily by its broadcast radio stations. Revenue in the segment declined 1.6 percent, helped by $10.1 million in political advertising revenue. Excluding political advertising, Multiplatform revenue was down 2.8 percent.
Broadcast radio revenue was nearly flat at $397.6 million, compared with $395.8 million a year earlier. Network revenue declined 3.8 percent to $103.7 million, while sponsorships and events revenue fell to $30.5 million from $36.5 million.
“We have a monetization challenge,” iHeartMedia CEO Bob Pittman admitted to investors during a conference call on Monday, noting advertisers remain interested in digital and programmatic opportunities available on its streaming platforms but not necessarily its traditional radio frequencies.
iHeart’s Digital Audio Group unit continued to deliver growth, though it remains smaller than iHeartMedia’s broadcast-centered operations: Podcast revenue increased 20.7 percent to $162.1 million, up from $134.3 million in the prior-year quarter.
iHeartMedia is using its broadcast radio assets to help build a new video podcast marketplace, with Pittman calling it an “incremental growth opportunity.” He specifically cited streaming video distribution through Netflix, Disney Plus and Hulu as part of a broader strategy to help differentiate the company’s revenue-generating opportunities.
The Disney pact is the latest — it was announced on Monday, the same day as iHeart’s earnings release — with Disney Plus and Hulu incorporating some of iHeart’s podcasts that are complementary to its programming.
