Audible is rolling out three AI features in beta for US and UK users. Features will first be available for Audible Original titles, and the company plans to expand in the future. Later this fall, the company will release “interactive stories” that allow readers to have a “bonus experience” with a character outside of a book’s narrative, “brought to life through a unique combination of generative AI, conversational design, and rich sound production.” The first interactive story is adapted from Bram Stoker’s Dracula and follows the character of Renfield. “The character speaks first, assigning the listener a role, goal, and […]
Kobo CEO on Expansion and Older Readers
On the newest episode of the Open Book podcast, Open Road ceo David Steinberger talks to Kobo ceo Michael Tamblyn about not fighting with their competitors, changing consumer demographics, and internal debates about AI. Tamblyn explained that Amazon is the predominant seller of ebooks only in the US and UK, and other countries buy ebooks through local bookselling chains. Once Kobo was established in Canada, Tamblyn recognized that competing with Amazon, Google, Apple, and Barnes & Noble for market share in the US would be like “a knife fight in a dark basement.” Instead, Kobo expanded into Europe and Asia, […]