Inside the Australian and New Zealand book industry

Image. Advertisement:

US audiobooks grow by double digits for 10th straight year

The US audiobook market recorded its 10th straight year of double-digit growth in 2021, with data from the Audio Publishers Association (APA) showing the market grew 25% compared to 2020, reports Publishing Perspectives.

Audiobook revenue in 2021 totalled US$1.6 billion (A$2.2b). Nearly 74,000 audiobook titles were published last year, up six per cent on 2020.

APA executive director Michele Cobb told Publishing Perspectives that science fiction and fantasy ‘narrowly edged out’ mysteries, thrillers and suspense as the most popular genre, with romance and general fiction not far behind. The romance genre experienced the most growth, up 75%, followed by self-help (34%) and science fiction (32%).

The sales survey includes data from 28 publishers including Audible, Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster.

 

Category: International news