Audio

Perhaps in response to Spotify, Amazon Music subscribers in the US, UK, and Canada can listen to one full audiobook per month.

During the first seven months of this year, the category in the US has grown by 25 percent in dollars versus last year’s 12 to 15 percent.

The first guests include AJ Jacobs on living Constitutionally, Claire Messud on writing family, and Johanna Copeland on creation in the time of motherhood.

One in two Australian audiobook consumers uses Spotify as of 2024, heavily learning toward younger and female audiobook consumers.

Libraries have typically been able only to license ebooks and audiobooks from publishers and aggregators, with no option to buy.

After a challenging 2023, Big Five publisher HarperCollins is enjoying a more successful fiscal 2024.

Spotify’s profit margin is up, and the last quarter was the most profitable three-month period ever for the company.

Gallery Books (Simon & Schuster) is launching Lemonada Books to publish books based on podcasts coming out of Lemonada Media.

More than 1,000 audiobooks from about 100 independent publishers (who use Ingram to distribute) will now be available via Spotify.

Open Road Integrated Media has launched Open Book, a podcast hosted by Open Road’s CEO, David Steinberger.

Amazon’s Audible has announced that it is “rolling out a new royalty model that prioritizes equity, flexibility, and insight for creators.”

Media company PAVE Studios is launching a book publishing venture, PAVE Publishing House, focused on producing books by podcast creators.

The National Music Publishers’ Association has filed an FTC complaint against Spotify over a recent move to bundle music and audiobooks.

According to the Audio Publishers Association, revenue increased 9 percent in 2023 for the 27 publishers surveyed.

Spotify’s new audiobook subscription service already includes all of the Big Five publishers.

Airwave podcast network and BenBella Books are launching Airwave Books, which will feature nonfiction books by Airwave’s creators.

The publishing industry gathered in London this month for the London Book Fair, which attracted about 30,000 book industry professionals.

Until recently, if you wanted to use Spotify for a streaming audiobook subscription, you had to be on their premium plan.

Sanderson was able to bring Audible to the table to negotiate new terms not just for him, but for all self-publishing authors.

Two weeks ago, Findaway notified users they were changing their terms of use, which raised an alarm with authors who saw a big rights grab.

The publisher partly attributed its sales increase to “strong market growth for downloadable audiobooks,” as well as a new Spotify partnership.

Audible quietly started allowing AI-narrated audiobooks to enter its storefront late last fall, long after other retailers had done the same.

Early reports are filtering in on Spotify’s new audiobook listening program that offers 15 free hours for paid subscribers.

According to OverDrive, the leading distributor of digital books to libraries, digital borrowing saw a 19 percent increase overall in 2023.

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