The Guardian view on audiobooks: a growing market that asks existential questions | Editorial

When is a book not a book? When it is performed by a starry cast of hundreds. Except it has always been more complicated than thatNews this week of a 17% hike in the UK’s audiobook sales might seem like a niche business story, but it raises an existential question. What exactly is an audiobook today? Is it a book? Is it a play? Or is it becoming something else entirely? What is clear is that a jostle for market dominance is driving it into new dimensions. The streaming platform Spotify followed its move into podcasting two years ago with the launch of an audiobooks business. Though it has yet to start making its own recordings, last autumn it made a deal for 200,000 audiobooks to be available to its premium users.Not to be outdone, Amazon-owned Audible – accustomed to being the market leader – upped its game, hiring the Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes to record multi-voice versions of the Dickens novels Oliver Twist and David Copperfield, and announcing last month that it had reached an agreement for a recording of JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series, voiced by more than 100 actors and featuring a “groundbreaking new soundscape”. The new Potter audiobooks, it said, would not usurp but “sit alongside and complement” conventional recordings by Stephen Fry and Jim Dale, which Audible also hosts. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2024-05-10 17:25:03 UTC ]
News tagged with: #17% hike #audiobook sales #existential question #audiobook today #market dominance #start making #premium users #market leader #david copperfield #jk rowling #sit alongside #stephen fry #jim dale #harry potter #audiobook

Other Publishing stories related to: 'The Guardian view on audiobooks: a growing market that asks existential questions | Editorial'


Children’s authors of colour published in UK rose to 11.7% of market in 2021

BookTrust research shows, however, that the overall picture ‘remains far from representative’ with some writers and illustrators reporting tokenismNew research has found that 11.7% of children’s book creators published in the UK in 2021 were people of colour, up from 5.6% in 2017.Despite the big... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-11-23 06:01:50 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #uk rose #diana gerald #children’s book


Martin Sorrell-backed S4S Ventures, Bertelsmann invest $10M in data asset management outfit as it blends new content, analytics-based marketing for clients

The recent explosion in content has created the need not only for more sophisticated tools to manage it, but better ways to attach data and analytics to the content in order to better optimize it at the right time for the right opportunity. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2022-11-22 05:01:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #recent explosion #bertelsmann


New and Forthcoming Titles for a Diverse Market

The following is a listing of new and forthcoming adult, young adult, and children’s titles that showcase the multicultural nature of American society and reflect the ever-increasing range of topics and disciplines needed to serve its diverse communities. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-11-19 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #forthcoming titles #forthcoming adult #young adult #american society #diverse communities


Greece Is Bologna Book Plus’ First Market of Honor

In March's edition of Bologna Children's Book Fair, the Book Plus program will have Greece as its own 'market of honor' exhibitor. The post Greece Is Bologna Book Plus’ First Market of Honor appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-11-14 18:23:22 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #honor appeared #book fair #bologna children #children's book #bologna book


Christian Children's Book Publishers Eye Wider Market

Publishers are adding books they say are faithful to Biblical values, but not explicitly religious, leaving it to parents to draw connections. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-11-09 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #christian children #draw connections #children's book


NPD BookScan: The US Market, Early 2022 Holidays

In a trend reflecting reader behavior more than supply-chain issues, the American book market heads downward in NPD's BookScan data. The post NPD BookScan: The US Market, Early 2022 Holidays appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-11-07 18:29:40 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #supply-chain issues #bookscan data #bookscan #book market


AAP: Six Charts on the US Book Market, 2017 to 2021

Following record book sales in the US in 2021, we review five years of book market data collected by the Association of American Publishers. The post AAP: Six Charts on the US Book Market, 2017 to 2021 appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-11-03 15:12:27 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #post aap #american publishers #book market


Beyrouth Livres: A First Staging in a Troubled Market

The new iteration of the francophone book fair in Beirut was designed 'to have the author meet the public' in beleaguered Lebanon. The post Beyrouth Livres: A First Staging in a Troubled Market appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-10-31 15:18:37 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book fair


People are going spare about Prince Harry’s memoir. Just don’t ask them why | Marina Hyde

The Sussexes draw more ire than genocidal dictators – from people who struggle to articulate exactly what their problem isThe interior designer and social commentator Nicky Haslam has just released the latest annual version of his fabled tea towel, on which he lists some more of the things that... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-10-28 12:28:22 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #andre agassi #public eye #memoir


Question Time with Deep Vellum's Will Evans

Dallas, Texas’s Deep Vellum Publishing has had an extraordinary year, relaunching Dalkey Archive Press and publishing Ukrainian writer Andrei Kurkov's 'Grey Bees' just as Russia invaded Ukraine. We spoke with publisher Will Evans and this and other bookish matters. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #question time #deep vellum #extraordinary year #grey bees #bookish matters


Question Time with Sandorf Passage's Buzz Poole

The non-profit, independent publisher Sandorf Passage launched in late 2020 with a focus on publishing works in translation from Eastern European authors and sociopolitical and wartime books in particular. We spoke with Buzz Poole, the publisher, about how the press is developing and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #question time #publishing works #independent publisher


Spotify accuses Apple of impeding its fledgling audiobook business

Spotify launched its audiobook business just last month with 300,000 titles, but is now saying that Apple is engaging in "anticompetitive" behavior that is impinging the new business, the company wrote in a blog post. It said that Apple rejected its audiobook purchasing system three times due to... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2022-10-26 07:02:10 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #app store #european commission #audiobook


Question Time with Astra House's Ben Schrank

We speak with Ben Schrank, the former head of Henry Holt and now head of upstart publisher Astra House, about the latest developments at the press and other bookish matters. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-26 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #question time #henry holt #latest developments #bookish matters


'We'll Sue Him': Trump Claims Bob Woodward Audiobook Interview Tapes 'Belong To Me'

The former president warned: "We've already hired the lawyers" to sue the prominent journalist. Continue reading at HuffPost

[ HuffPost | 2022-10-22 01:40:50 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #audiobook


At Frankfurt: ‘Many Different Approaches for Publishers’ to Audiobooks

Among issues discussed in audiobook market development: more business models and Spotify's entry with à la carte pricing. The post At Frankfurt: ‘Many Different Approaches for Publishers’ to Audiobooks appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-10-20 23:29:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #audiobooks appeared #business models #audiobook


Frankfurt Week: A New Report on the Indian Book Market

With more than 90 percent of the Indian book market market in educational publishing, India's publishers report an upbeat assessment. The post Frankfurt Week: A New Report on the Indian Book Market appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-10-17 10:47:07 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #frankfurt week #educational publishing #book market


Audiobooks: Bonnier’s BookBeat Opens in Spain and Italy

BookBeat, based in Sweden, is offering usage-time audiobook subscriptions in both its new markets, Italy and Spain. The post Audiobooks: Bonnier’s BookBeat Opens in Spain and Italy appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-10-12 19:40:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #italy appeared #post audiobooks #audiobook


Bloomberg Media Is Shutting Off Its Open-Market Programmatic Advertising

The business news publisher Bloomberg Media will stop serving open-market third-party programmatic display advertising on both its website and mobile app, beginning Jan. 1, 2023, according to chief executive officer Scott Havens. The publisher will also discontinue its use of vendors whose... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2022-10-11 09:54:39 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bloomberg media #mobile app #news publisher


New audiobook platforms are launched to rival Amazon’s Audible

Spiracle will feature titles from independent presses, while last month, Spotify also began offering audiobooks to US customersA new audiobook platform which aims to create a “lovely, welcoming, independent bookstore kind of vibe” has launched, as audio giant Spotify also enters the fast-growing... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-10-03 18:09:30 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #rival amazon #feature titles #independent presses #audiobook platform #including books #literary fiction #independent bookstore #audiobook


Storytel Rolls Out Its Audiobook Service in France

The Stockholm-based audiobook corporation Storytel, in association with some of French publishing's biggest players, goes live in France. The post Storytel Rolls Out Its Audiobook Service in France appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-09-27 10:14:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #france appeared #audiobook service #french publishing #biggest players #audiobook