On the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, Audible - Amazon's audiobooks service has announced a new slate of Audible Originals for music lovers. This will start in June and last summer with the latest releases. These new Audible Originals will amplify the innovation, creativity, and great history of the albums, artists, and moments that shaped hip-hop. The content includes a … [Read more...] about Enjoy the New Slate of Hip Hop Originals by Amazon’s Audible
Audiobook News
How to listen to Dolby Atmos audiobook titles on Audible
Audible recently announced it has teamed up with Dolby Laboratories which will allow for listening to audiobooks in Dolby Atmos format. However, if you aren't already aware of what Dolby Atmos is, here it is. Dolby Atmos is a surround sound technology designed to provide a more immersive audio experience by adding height channels to traditional surround sound setups. Instead … [Read more...] about How to listen to Dolby Atmos audiobook titles on Audible
Latest Audible update makes iOS 15.5 the minimum needed to run the app
Audible has come up with a new update for iOS users which claims to introduce several improvements as well as bug fixes. According to the change log available, it is iOS 15.5 that would be the minimum needed for receiving updates henceforth from Audible. That is also the minimum iOS version needed to make the most of the Spatial audio and Dolby Atmos sound effects that the … [Read more...] about Latest Audible update makes iOS 15.5 the minimum needed to run the app
Nielsen BookData reports slight decline in e-book sales in the UK in 2022, audiobook growth slows
Nielsen BookData’s Consumer 2022 presentation at the London Transport Museum has revealed a slight decline in the UK book market in 2022. According to the research, UK consumers bought 348 million books last year, a decrease from the pandemic-boosted highs of 2020 and 2021, with volume and value down by 4 percent to 5 percent compared to 2021. However, the report shows that … [Read more...] about Nielsen BookData reports slight decline in e-book sales in the UK in 2022, audiobook growth slows
Audiobook Narrators and Authors Fear Apple Using Their Voices to Train AI
Spotify’s audiobook narrators and authors became angry after learning of a clause in the agreement between authors and Findaway Voices – a leading audiobook distributor. Findaway Voices allowed Apple to use audiobook files for training machine learning (ML) models. Some authors and narrators say they were unaware of the clause. Many believe they signed off on the ML clause … [Read more...] about Audiobook Narrators and Authors Fear Apple Using Their Voices to Train AI
Kobo Plus e-book and audiobook subscription service launched in the US and the UK
Kobo has announced the launch of its Kobo Plus subscription service in the US and UK alongside the release of the Kobo Elipsa 2E. Similar to Kindle Unlimited, subscribers can pay a monthly fee for unlimited access to a select library of e-books and audiobooks. Kobo's Kobo Plus catalog currently features over 1.3 million e-books and over 100,000 audiobooks, with additional … [Read more...] about Kobo Plus e-book and audiobook subscription service launched in the US and the UK
TuneIn now has audiobooks after first introducing podcasts
Before music and podcast app Spotify introduced audiobooks, audiobook service Audible first branched out into podcasts. Yet another streaming service is now entering the audiobook market. To complement its spoken word roster of podcasts and talk live radio streams, the live-streaming audio provider TuneIn, the world’s leading live-streaming audio service, has launched an … [Read more...] about TuneIn now has audiobooks after first introducing podcasts
Storytel acquires the audiobook division of Finnish bookstore chain Suomalainen Kirjakauppa
Storytel has announced via a press release the acquisition of the audiobook branch of Suomalainen Kirjakauppa, a prominent bookstore chain in Finland, from Otava Group. The merger of the subscriber base of Suomalainen Plus and Storytel has also been finalized. Suomalainen Kirjakauppa, which is owned by the Otava Group happens to be the largest bookstore chain in Finland. It … [Read more...] about Storytel acquires the audiobook division of Finnish bookstore chain Suomalainen Kirjakauppa
Artificial Intelligence Recreates the Voice of Late Voice Actor Kenji Utsumi for Sony Audiobook App
On Wednesday, YOMIBITO Plus, a new audiobook app from Sony Music Entertainment, was released. Classic works of Japanese literature are read in the app using three well-known voice actors' synthesized voices that CoeFont, an AI startup, has recreated using AI. An AI-replicated voice from Shichir Umeda (Pochita from My Life as Inukai-Puppy, san's Izumi from Shikimori's Not Just a … [Read more...] about Artificial Intelligence Recreates the Voice of Late Voice Actor Kenji Utsumi for Sony Audiobook App
Audible is now playing advertisements in audiobooks
Audible is launching something very controversial, and other audiobook providers might follow suit. The company is experimenting with a new system to play audio advertisements within audiobooks, Audible Originals and Podcasts. The advertisements will not show up for people with an Audible subscription, giving them access to one credit per month, which can be used to buy an … [Read more...] about Audible is now playing advertisements in audiobooks