Spotify is officially challenging Amazon’s audiobook dominance. As previously rumored, the streamer’s premium subscribers in the UK and Australia now have access to 15 hours per month of audiobooks at no extra charge, with the same service coming to the US soon.
The service will offer a selection of over 150,000 titles, including an estimated 70% of The New York Times best-sellers list at any given time. The move is in line with Spotify’s goal to diversify its audio offerings, which already include music and podcasts. The company will pay royalty fees to major publishers like Penguin Random House, Hachette, Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, and Macmillan.
Although the streaming giant is a major player in the audio market with over half a billion users globally, it has struggled with profitability as of late. This new initiative is viewed as a strategic attempt to both attract and retain subscribers, particularly after a $1 price hike for US users earlier this year. For double their monthly subscription fee, users can get another 10 hours of listening.
Analysts suggest that publishers will welcome the competition as it could weaken Amazon’s grip on the audiobook market. Audiobooks are a growing industry, with global revenues expected to rise from $4.8 billion in 2021 to over $9 billion by 2026, according to media consultancy Omdia.
