“Audio was always here and it’s here to stay” said Christian Kessler, Head of Audio DACH at Bookwire, who opened Sunday’s Audiobook Summit. The same goes for audiobooks. Today, listeners can enjoy an audiobook through many different platforms. They can download their audiobook, stream it on platforms that require a subscription fee, or listen to it for free on podcast or music platforms like Spotify and YouTube Music. However, there’s an amazing fun fact: in Germany, CDs are still popular, as many people listen to their audiobooks in CD format through Amazon and Thalia!
While many believe that audiobooks harm the sales and appeal of printed books, Christian Kessler argued that this is not the case. On the contrary, audiobooks further promote the book industry in general and printed books in particular. The more platforms there are, the greater the revenue is for audiobooks. Although audiobooks are not as popular as podcasts or other audio products, their revenue is at very high levels and continues to grow. In Germany, for example, the revenue in 2022 was 250 million euros and, just one year later, it reached 308 million euros.
Audiobooks can reach every audience and support all the genres. For this reason, Christian Kessler emphasized that it is important for streaming platforms to create rules that cater to every possible audience, from adults to young children, as audio is the future. This is why, while concluding his speech, he encourage the audience by saying: “Invest in audio no matter what.”
