Hachette is one of the largest publishers in the world and they have just announced their first quarter earnings. Sales increased by 8.7% and they generated $591 million USD in the first three months of 2022. Digital book sales accounted for 8.1% of total publishing in 2022, compared to 9% in the first quarter of 2021. Sales of downloadable audiobooks continued to improve and represented 4.8% of revenue compared to 4.6% in the same year-ago period.
The CEO of Hachette Michael Pietsch attributed the increase to “good performances from most divisions, a thriving third-party distribution business, and continuing high backlist sales.” Among the titles leading the increase was Dolly Parton and James Patterson’s Run, Rose, Run, Colleen Hoover’s Verity, Harlan Coben’s The Match, Michael Connelly’s The Dark Hours, Andrzej Sapkowski’s The Last Wish, and Stephenie Meyer’s Midnight Sun.
Michael Kozlowski has been writing about audiobooks and e-readers for the past twelve years. His articles have been picked up by major and local news sources and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
