Spotify brings 200,000+ audiobooks to Premium subscribers in the US

[Karlston]

 

Spotify Premium users in the US can now access its catalog of over 200,000 audiobooks at no extra cost, the company announced today. The music streaming giant will allow 15 hours of audiobook streaming every month to Premium Individual subscribers, as well as plan managers for Family and Duo accounts.

 

This is similar to what it offers in the UK and Australia where Spotify opened up audiobook access earlier this year. Spotify estimates that the bundled streaming time of 15 hours is equivalent to around two average audiobooks every month, and you can buy 10-hour top-ups if you reach the ceiling.

 

You don't need to follow any steps to turn on audiobook access in the Spotify app. If you're an eligible user, you'll start seeing audiobooks marked as "Included in Premium" and you can start streaming them right away.

 

In a blog post, Spotify stated:

 

Audiobooks are an entertaining way to finally get around to all the books you’ve always meant to read, a new way to experience the stories you already love, and a great way to discover your next favorite book.

 

In fact, we ran a consumer survey of over 1,000 Americans that showed that the younger generations are really taking to audiobook listening: Gen Z and millennials lead in audiobook listening, with 72% of 18-to-34-year-olds reporting that they listen to audiobooks.

Spotify has been trying to diversify its content catalog to make users spend more time on its app. The platform offers access to over 100 million songs and 5 million podcasts in addition to audiobooks. It also partnered with Patreon earlier this year, allowing creators to publish their subscriber-only premium content on Spotify.

 

The company has more reasons to do so as it revealed during Q3 earnings that the number of Spotify Premium users reached 226 million. Spotify had a successful third quarter with a reported profit of €65 million ($69 million approx.) which came after the music streamer increased the prices of its plans.

 

Source