Beginning in March, authors using Audible’s Audiobook Creation Exchange will be able to see data on returns, including number of units per title, both in their account dashboard and in monthly financial statements. The move, announced on the ACX blog, is a response to continuing pressure from the Authors Guild and ACX authors for changes to the company’s returns policy, after its negative financial impact (reportedly reducing sales anywhere from 15 to 50 percent over time) became apparent last fall. This follows Audible’s decision last month to pay authors royalties on returns made more than seven days after purchase, which […]
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Audible Will Pay Author Royalties for Audiobooks Returned After Seven Days
Responding to strenuous objections from authors and a number of groups that represent writers, Audible will reduce the extent to which their liberal returns and exchange program is conducted at authors’ expense. Starting in January, Audible will only debit authors’ earnings for audiobooks returned within seven days of purchase. Previously, an author who distributed their audiobook via Audible’s Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX) forfeited their earnings any time a customer returned their title within 365 days of purchase. The extent of those returns charges was not transparent to authors until last month. Audible will continue to allow liberal returns and exchanges, […]
Authors Demand Audible Stop Aggressive Exchange Policy that Reduces Earnings
Following an accounting adjustment in October, authors who produce and sell their own audiobooks through Audible’s ACX became aware of the significant extent to which “returned” and “exchanged” audiobooks — encouraged by Audible itself — have been cutting into their proceeds. Returns and exchanges turned out to comprise “15% to 50% or more of lost sales over time” for many authors. One author, Susan May, published a lengthy post about her experience. More authors have traded stories and strategies in a Facebook group “to come together to persuade ACX & Audible to give us a fair deal on our audiobooks.” […]
People, Etc
Ken Brooks is leaving his position as chief content officer at Wiley and will resume his consulting practice at Treadwell Media focused on content and operations in trade, reference and education publishing. Jessica Sindler has joined the ghostwriting and publishing services firm Kevin Anderson & Associates as executive editor. Previously she was senior editor at Dey Street books. US Poet Laureate Joy Harjo has been appointed to a third term, only the second person in 77 years to do so. The International Publishers Association (IPA) confirmed Bodour Al Qasimi, founder of the Kalimat Group in the UAE, as president-elect. Owner […]
Storytel Outperforms Its Own Forecasts
Swedish audiobook subscription service Storytel announced earnings for the third quarter ended September 30, with net sales of SEK609 million ($70.6 million), up from SEK491 million in last year’s period. Streaming sales were SEK490 million, up from SEK 399 million, or 23 percent. The company averaged 1.36 million paying subscribers in the quarter, up 34 percent from 1.014 million. Both streaming sales and subscribers exceeded the company’s forecasts for the quarter. The company also announced positive EBITDA for the first ime, of SEK7 million, but cautions that it was due to an accounting change and won’t be a trend: “since […]
People, Etc.
Kurt Mueller is joining Inkshares as coo. He was previously coo of The Onion for eight years. Cassie Mannes Murray has been promoted to associate agent at Howland Literary. Eugene Winick, 84, longtime president of McIntosh & Otis literary agency — which he acquired in 1985 — died August 21. Gail Sheehy, 82, author of bestselling Passages, died on August 24. Audio Audible has launched a new lower-priced subscription plan: For $7.95 a month, Audible Plus actually offers less. They provide “unlimited” access to what is actually a limited catalog of approximately 11,000 titles. The regular Audible subscription thus becomes […]