Despite the growing success and popularity of podcasts, not everyone thinks they are a good use of time. Some people see podcasting as a slow medium for information delivery, according to a MarketWatch report.

Writing on his own blog, Web-content management entrepreneur Pater T. Davis says "In the time I can listen to an average podcast, I could have caught up on my 50 favorite blogs, or read a chapter in a book, or read the latest issue of Red Herring magazine."

He thinks that it's much more efficient to read information for yourself than listen while someone provides it to you.

Traci Sheridan, the founder of Waxxi.us, thinks podcasts need to be more interactive before they can become a valuable medium for information distribution. She has tried her experiment, too. Listeners were encouraged to call in on phone lines or participate in an online chat while the podcast was being recorded. "We thought that it would be more interesting to let people be part of the conversation. The audience is what's really interesting," she said.

Even though some listeners don't see much value in podcasts, most seem pleased with the current pre-recorded style. The iTunes Music store features an extensive podcast library, and many users prefer the time-shifted style of listening to a podcast when it is most convenient.

As the podcast market matures, we may see a blending of the two styles: podcasts recorded live with listener interaction, but are also available for download after the fact. As the technology improves, we will likely see even more ways podcasts can be presented.

Until then, we'll continue listening and watching podcasts that, for some, are a waste of time. For the rest of us, they work just fine.