The NYT profiles Reese’s Book Club as the initiative nears its 100th pick, to be announced in September. In the club’s most powerful early days it drew some criticism and resentment from indie booksellers and others over an exclusive promotional arrangement with Audible (which ended quietly in early 2021). The very end of the NYT piece offers the news that “this month, Reese’s Book Club will unveil an exclusive audio partnership with Apple, allowing readers to find all the picks in one place on the Apple Books app.”
Audio
KDP Virtual Voice Beta Has Produced Over 40,000 Audible Titles
A recent report from Bloomberg noted that Amazon’s beta program allowing invited KDP authors to produce audiobooks using synthetic machine narration has resulted in over 40,000 “virtual voice” audiobooks available through Audible so far. All of the titles are clearly labelled and introduced as having been created by “computer-generated narration for audiobooks.” At least some customers have asked Audible to provide a search filter that would omit the virtual voice titles. An Audible spokesperson writes to Bloomberg, “During the beta we are learning more about what our customers want as we continue to innovate on their behalf.” That person reports that […]
Harper to Create AI Audioboooks of Some Foreign Language Titles
Harper Collins will create AI audiobooks of select foreign language backlist titles, working with text-to-speech software company ElevenLabs. “The agreement will lead to the production of audio versions of select deep backlist series books that would not otherwise have been created.” ElevenLabs’ interface can create an audiobook in about an hour that will, according to Harper, “reflect the emotion, intonation, and pacing of the written word in audio, delivering a high-quality experience that sounds human,” the Bookseller reports. A release from ElevenLabs states that “HarperCollins will continue to devote time and resources to voice actor-led productions which are intrinsic to […]
Spotify Will Raise Prices to Help Pay for Those Free Audiobook Hours
Spotify plans to raise prices later this year in the US to help cover the cost of the 15 hours of audiobooks per month that they added last year, Bloomberg reports. They also report that Spotify will add a new basic tier with no audiobook hours for $10.99 a month. (That’s the current price for the premium plan that does include audiobooks.) Bloomberg says Spotify will raise prices $1 a month for individual plans and $2 a month for family/multi-user plans in five markets by the end of April, including the UK, Australia, and Pakistan.
Spotify’s New Audiobook Plan To Launch In Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand
Spotify’s new audiobook plan, which gives Premium subscribers 15 hours of audiobooks per month, will launch in Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand on April 9. The plan previously took effect in the US, the UK, and Australia last fall. Subscribers will have access to 250,000 titles. Payment terms for publishers and authors remain opaque.
News Corp CFO Discusses Audio and AI Partnerships
At the Deutsche Bank Media, Internet, and Telecom Conference yesterday, News Corp CFO Susan Panuccio addressed Harper Collins’ disappointing results last year, partnering with Spotify, and the use of AI technology. Panuccio attributed Harper’s 2023 sales, which fell 10 percent, to “the Amazon reset with their logistics” and inflationary pressures on manufacturing. Additionally, she said, “quite frankly, we didn’t have as good of frontlist as what we have had in other years.” Still, Harper has succeeded in cutting costs and is in good shape for the rest of the year, she said, with the 5 percent reduction in headcount, as […]