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New Audiobook Platforms Are Being Launched to Compete with Amazon's Audible

on Oct 04, 2022

As audio giant Spotify enters the fast-growing audiobook market, a new audiobook platform that aims to create a "lovely, welcoming, independent bookstore kind of vibe" has been launched.

Spiracle sells books from a variety of publishers, but its emphasis is on independent presses and a wide range of literary fiction and nonfiction, including books in translation.

The goal, according to director Kate Bland, is not to offer "every single book that's ever been made into an audio, but we're selecting what we hope will be a wonderful array of international books and translations."

Spiracle creates a number of audiobooks in collaboration with independent publishers and operates on a subscription basis, with users paying a monthly or annual fee for access. Individuals can also purchase titles on a one-time basis.

Bland explained that the company was founded on the "premise that there are book-lovers who want to go and buy their audiobooks and be part of a literary atmosphere that is just about the pleasure and life and world that you can have within books."

She expressed hope that the company would succeed due to "people's desire for independent platforms."

Spiracle officially launches on October 6, and it is not the only new player in the space; Spotify began offering audiobooks to US customers last month.

The streaming service has a catalog of over 300,000 audiobook titles, which users must purchase individually if they want to listen to them, even if they have a paid version of Spotify.

Spotify's vice president and global head of audiobooks and gated content, Nir Zicherman, stated that the company has "always believed that the potential for audio is limitless" and sees a "substantial untapped market."

Between July 2020 and June 2021, "audiobook purchases in the UK saw their highest 12-month period on record," according to Nielsen, which tracks book sales. Despite having only a 6% share of the UK book market, Nielsen stated that the "format has certainly carved out its place in the book market, especially after gaining a slew of new fans during pandemic lockdowns."

Spotify also purchased Findaway, which was founded in 2005, and built Playaway, which is described as a "built-for-circulation, pre-loaded audiobook player," last year. It now offers digital audiobook distribution and Findaway Voices, a self-publishing platform for independent authors. The US Department of Justice has not yet approved Spotify's acquisition of Findaway.

For years, Audible, an Amazon subsidiary, has dominated the audiobook market, and other companies, particularly smaller ones, have struggled to make inroads.

Hibooks, an app that initially operated on an all-you-can-eat basis for £8.99, shut down in 2021. The United Kingdom was its third-largest market, but a note on its website stated that "due to unforeseen circumstances, we, unfortunately, must close our service earlier than expected." Hibooks stated that developers were "working on a new platform to offer free audio content, including some of your favorite classic titles," but no further details were provided.

There are a few other smaller audiobook platforms that are still in operation, some of which operate on a subscription basis and others on a title-by-title basis.

Among them is Storytel, which is available in 25 countries around the world but not yet in the United Kingdom. It offers over 50,000 titles to listen to and operates on a streaming model. It also operates under the Mofibo brand.

Audiobooks.com charges users £7.99 per month, which covers one "premium" and one "VIP" book (from an exclusive selection) each month. Users can also purchase credits to supplement their subscriptions, with one credit granting access to one audiobook.