No, it’s not a Zen koan but rather yet another new experiment from Team Lunch. For enhanced accessibility as well anyone who prefers listening to the day’s news, we are now offering a podcast of the daily newsletter. Visit or bookmark the Publishers Lunch Audio page, where we will post the daily recording after the newsletter is emailed. (There is an RSS feed as well, to notify you of new daily posts.) Each day of the week a different Lunch staff member reads you the day’s news. The index page will hold an archive of up to two weeks posts […]
Audio
Storytel Expands Into France
Storytel is launching their audiobook subscription in France today, and has partnered with the country’s largest publishers — including Hachette Livre, Madrigall, Editis, and Actes Sud. Readers will be able to access more than 7,000 titles in French and more than 290,000 in Arabic and English through Storytel. Storytel says the agreements also “open the door for expansion into French-speaking markets.” The company’s new editorial lead for the European region Constance Parpoil “will head the development of the French catalogue and other publishing partnerships in the region.” “We are happy that Storytel is opening a service in France on a […]
Spotify Launches Audiobooks
As long promised, now Spotify has launched audiobooks, making 300,000 titles available for purchase to its US users. Spotify’s vp and global head of audiobooks and gated content Nir Zicherman said, “Starting today, users in the US can easily find audiobooks on Spotify alongside music and podcasts as a section in their library, in search, and in their curated recommendations on Home.” Audiobooks are priced individually (the company says prices are “competitive and in line with other a la carte audiobook retailers”) and there is no credit system in place akin to Audible’s. The app includes a bookmarking function and […]
Audio: More Diversion Podcasts, Pluto Audio
Diversion Audio announced four forthcoming podcasts, comprising their first offerings in talk and fiction formats. “War Queens” in the fall features actor Nathalie Emmanuel; “The Royals of Malibu” launches on Valentine’s Day 2023, based on the romance series The Royals by Erin Watt. UK Publisher Pluto Books has launched Pluto Audio. Six titles are currently available for purchase on their website, and 12 more are planned for 2022.
Acquisitions: RBMedia Acquires Upfront Books
RBMedia announced the acquisition of audiobook publisher Upfront Books, founded in 2019 by Tyler Finkelstein. The company works with publishers, self-published authors, and literary estates. RBmedia CEO Tom MacIsaac said in the release, “We’re impressed with the quality of the business and catalog that Tyler and his team have built in just a few years. This acquisition supports RBmedia’s continued business growth and expansion initiatives.” Upfront says they have a “technology-driven process to identify, license, produce, and publish great titles as audiobooks for the very first time.”
Spotify Sees Audiobooks As A “Massive Opportunity”
During the company’s Investor Day on Wednesday, Spotify founder and ceo Daniel Ek asserted that, “We believe that audiobooks, in their many different forms, will be a massive opportunity.” Spotify’s planned acquisition of audiobook distributor Findaway, which they had expected to close quickly before the end of 2021, is still pending, presumably awaiting regulatory approval. Ek deployed some typically creative/expansive tech-world math to quantify the opportunity they foresee: Audiobooks currently have about 6-7 percent of the market share of the global book market, which he said was around $140 billion, but in “the most penetrated audiobook markets” (presumably Scandinavian countries […]