Top 10 Audiobook apps

Latest news about Audiobook apps

30.10.24. Spotify Audiobooks launch in France, Belgium and Netherlands



Spotify is a cheeky, upstart musician in the concert hall of digital audiobooks, where giants like Audible and Storytel already hold court. Today it has taken a bold step onto the international stage, waving an audiobook flag in the direction of France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. With the subtlety of a tap dancer in a library, it’s now offering up a smorgasbord of literary voices from the likes of Gaël Faye, Maylis de Kerangal, Joël Dicker, Suzanne Vermeer and Saskia Noort—names that somehow sound better when whispered over a strong coffee. Premium subscribers in these newly inducted territories can dive into over 200,000 titles (that’s roughly one long book per day for 548 years), with a clever option to snag any elusive non-Premium titles à la carte. Meanwhile, non-subscribers are free to purchase anything they fancy, because, well, Spotify’s nothing if not accommodating.


2024. Audible implemented AI-generated recommendations



Audible, the Amazon-owned audiobook service, continues to experiment with AI to improve audiobook discovery and offer customized recommendations. The latest feature - AI-powered tags, which analyze customer feedback to offer suggestions according to individual preferences and topic pages that helps users to find similar audio books. The experiment is only available to USA users with iOS and Android devices. Through a new “Tags” carousel in the app, Audible’s AI analyzes customer reviews and briefly explains why other listeners enjoyed a specific audiobook. This allows you to quickly get to the point without having to read numerous reviews.


2024. Audible recruits actors to train voice-generating AI for audiobooks



Audible, Amazon’s audiobook division, revealed that it will develop AI trained on the voices of professional narrators to produce new audiobook recordings. A select group of audiobook narrators based in the U.S. will be invited to train the AI with their voices starting this week, according to Audible. The trained AI will be employed to generate recordings and narrators will have the opportunity to approve their synthetic voice for particular works, as well as modify the pronunciation and pacing. Audible states that narrators who engage in the program will be compensated for any audiobooks produced using their AI-generated voices on a title-by-title, royalty-sharing basis.


2024. Apple Podcasts now allow to listen audio books via web browser



Apple Podcasts can now be streamed from the web. It functions on all major web browsers (Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari) in over 170 countries. Apple Podcasts on the web enables users to access features that were previously only available on the app. These include exploring millions of audiobooks, accessing sections like Library and Top Charts, purchasing premium podcast subscriptions and more. Listeners can sync their Apple Accounts to be able to pause a podcast and save their playback progress to listen later, as well as view their followed shows and subscriptions. Users without an Apple Account can also use the web experience but can only explore and listen.


2024. YouTube is testing sleep timer for audio-books



YouTube is testing a new sleep timer feature for its Premium users, allowing them to pause videos after a set time, which is particularly useful for those who fall asleep to long podcasts or audio books. The timer can be enabled on desktop via a specific page or on mobile through the “Settings > Try experimental new features” option and it appears in the video player's Settings menu. Users can choose to pause playback after intervals ranging from 10 minutes to the end of the video and a pop-up will appear to extend the timer if needed. While this feature has been available on Spotify for some time, YouTube is now catching up with its introduction.


2024. Audible is testing an AI-powered search feature



In the sprawling, labyrinthine universe of audiobooks, where titles pile up like improbably verbose galaxies, Audible has unleashed "Maven," a shiny new AI-powered search contraption that aims to make sense of it all. Starting today—though only for a chosen few U.S. customers (roughly half, but who's counting?)—Maven acts as a delightfully well-read companion, offering personalized audiobook suggestions to those brave enough to type in natural language queries like, "I need an uplifting fiction novel with a female protagonist, please." Available on iOS and Android, this clever algorithm sifts through Audible's nearly one-million-title-strong catalog, though it’s currently dabbling in only a modest corner of the library. Think of it as a Hitchhiker's Guide to Audiobooks, but for now, only a few earthlings have a copy.


2024. Spotify adds countdown timers for Audiobooks



Spotify, in its infinite wisdom (or at least a reasonable facsimile thereof), has decided to spice up the audiobook game by rolling out Countdown Pages—shiny new digital pedestals designed to help listeners obsess over the exact second their next favorite tome hits the metaphorical shelves. These pages, dazzlingly precise, will let users pre-save upcoming audiobooks while authors, publishers, and narrators bask in the pre-launch promotional glow. In a stroke of intergalactic fairness, this feature will be available to both Premium subscribers and those freeloaders on the free tier. Drawing inspiration from its music-streaming escapades—where Countdown Pages helped luminaries like Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish whip fans into a frenzy—Spotify is banking on a similar burst of engagement for audiobooks. After all, when 70 percent of pre-saving music fans dive into albums within a week, it’s not entirely unreasonable to imagine audiobook lovers might follow suit, or at least not wander off in search of tea and biscuits first.


2024. New AI tool helps authors release more audiobooks on Amazon



In a corner of the publishing universe, where the improbable meets the ineffable, Audible has managed to conjure up a rather astonishing feat: an astonishing 40,000 audiobook titles narrated by voices that, rather suspiciously, aren’t entirely human. Thanks to a beta-stage contrivance courtesy of Amazon, self-published authors linked to the Kindle Store can now wave a metaphorical wand (or possibly just click a button) and see their words transmogrified into audiobooks at speeds that would make even the most caffeinated human narrator weep. It’s all frightfully efficient, though it does leave listeners in the existential quandary of wondering whether their soothing bedtime voice belongs to an AI or a human. Meanwhile, the future of human narrators teeters on a precarious edge, as authors save time, money, and perhaps a tiny slice of their souls.


2024. Google Play Books to offer audiobook previews on YouTube



Google Play Books has been provided an update that introduces several new features to the app. That includes integration with YouTube where users will be able to listen to audiobook previews for free. This would be in addition to the audiobook previews that are already available via the Play Books app for Android, iOS and the web. As it is, YouTube enjoys a huge userbase and it is only natural Google will like to leverage it to seek better exposure for its audiobooks as well. In any case, Google has been restructuring its media business of late and several of its services such as Play Music and Podcasts have been brought under the purview of YouTube. Among the other changes introduced to Play Books include the addition of the new Upcoming tab at the top of the Library section. So, you will now have Your books, Shelves and Series along with the newly added Upcoming tabs at the top under Library. This, as Google explained, will show “all your pre-orders in one location on a calendar that can be filtered based on specific series or authors.” You will also be provided updates on authors and series that you might have shown interest in, which can be like titles that you may have searched or viewed.


2024. Macmillan Audiobooks are now available on Cost-Per-Circ



In a move that might cause librarians to both cheer and spill their tea simultaneously, Overdrive has announced a rather clever alliance with Macmillan, embracing the Cost-Per-Circ program—a system that could be mistaken for witchcraft if not for its simplicity. Here’s how it works: libraries can now magically expand their audiobook collections with all of Macmillan’s offerings, yet only pay when a borrower takes a digital stroll through the title. These audiobooks, like well-behaved party guests, coexist amiably with other editions—be they One Copy/One User or the slightly eccentric Metered Access versions—giving patrons even more delicious reading opportunities. Among the catalog's gems are such illustrious works as Liane Moriarty's Apples Never Fall, Matthew Perry's Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, Jessica George's Maame, and Kristin Hannah's The Four Winds—a collection certain to turn quiet library corners into bustling hubs of auditory delight.


2024. Spotify brings its free audiobooks perk for Premium users to Canada, Ireland and New Zealand



Spotify, in a move that can only be described as whimsically magnanimous, has extended its free audiobook listening extravaganza to the good folk of Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand. These lucky individuals now find themselves in possession of 15 hours a month to indulge in the soothing tones of 250,000 audiobook titles—an upgrade from the mere 200,000 that previously graced the platform. This audacious leap comes just two months after Spotify, with a self-assured swagger, announced its audiobook service is now the second-largest in the galaxy (or at least Earth), trailing only behind Audible, that hulking monolith of Amazonian proportions. Since its launch last November, over 150,000 titles have found their way into users’ ears. Accessing these treasures is delightfully simple—just wander into the Home feed or search tab of the Spotify app, and voilà! Although, as with all things in life, there’s a catch: audiobooks marked “Included in Premium” will gently nudge you toward the land of Spotify Premium subscribers. But don’t worry, dear listener, your precious listening hours are safely logged in the app’s settings, because even chaos has its spreadsheets.


2023. Audible launches app for smart watches



In a galaxy not so far away, Audible has flung open the doors of possibility for Android smartwatch users everywhere, releasing a Wear OS app that’s as close to magic as technology can get without actually summoning a wizard. This marvel allows intrepid audiobook explorers to download their treasured tales straight to their wrists, enjoy the fine art of audio at whatever tempo suits them, and even pluck stories directly from their personal library on a Galaxy Watch—no pesky smartphone required! With Audible on Wear OS, you’re free to wander, unshackled from your phone, basking in the glorious convenience of having a universe of books tucked snugly onto your wrist. Whether you’re boldly venturing out or simply refusing to pick up your phone, Audible has created a splendidly immersive way to slip into story worlds, anytime, anywhere.


2023. Beelinguapp allows to learn language by audiobooks


In the vast and often perplexing universe of language learning, where conventional methods tend to resemble Vogon poetry in their lack of charm, Beelinguapp arrives like a friendly, towel-bearing hitchhiker with an irresistibly novel idea. Here, audiobooks and music combine forces to help you master up to 14 languages without the usual mind-numbing drills. Imagine this: text from your own comfortably familiar tongue cheekily juxtaposed alongside the enigmatic squiggles of the language you’re eager to conquer. Delivered in a mesmerizing karaoke-style narration by actual native speakers (none of whom are Vogons, we assure you), it’s a delightfully painless way to immerse yourself in anything from fairytales to news. Whether you fancy Spanish, German, Korean, or French—or, indeed, all of them—this cunning app updates weekly, ensuring you’re never left stranded in a literary desert without fresh content. So grab your device and dive in; it’s language learning with a dash of pan-galactic flair.


2023. Audiobook service Audioteka acquired by Polish holding



In a move that might best be described as audaciously ambitious or downright inevitable in the grand cosmic scheme of digital acquisitions, Audioteka has found itself scooped up by the magnanimous yet perpetually perplexing Wirtualna Polska Holding Group, a transaction involving a rather elegant sum of €17 million (which, to the untrained eye, might seem suspiciously specific). Audioteka, already renowned for its admirable dedication to audiobooks, has been laboring away in Warsaw to create a multilingual, multidimensional mobile app that seems capable of enchanting listeners across 23 countries in no fewer than 9 languages, which is possibly more than strictly necessary but charmingly thorough. Now, as these two enterprises align their various resources, untold synergies are forecasted, meaning customers can brace themselves for a digital listening experience likely to be both dizzyingly comprehensive and—as these things often are—slightly mysterious.


2023. Audiobook platform Libro.fm allows to support local bookstores



In a corner of the universe where audiobooks were largely the domain of vast, unfeeling corporations, a remarkable entity known as Libro.fm decided it was time to do something unreasonably sensible—expand its operations across the globe. With a twinkle of rebellion, this audiobook retailer and listening app set out to support over 2,200 independent bookshops (146 of them bravely international), allowing these cozy havens of literature to fend off the terrifying behemoth that is Amazon. The plan is delightfully simple: whenever a customer buys an audiobook or signs up for a membership, the profits wend their way to the customer's chosen bookstore. This means that instead of fueling a massive, faceless conglomerate like Audible, you could be funding the bookshop down the road, where the shelves always seem to smell of adventure and possibility. And that, as the marketing people might say, is quite a neat trick.


2023. Android Reading Mode can turn any text into an audiobook



Android users have now entered a splendid new era of multitasking and reading, thanks to Google’s latest app, delightfully named Reading Mode. For those who want to devour content while juggling life’s many other digital demands—or, let’s be honest, for the visually impaired who’ve had quite enough of straining their eyes—Reading Mode offers a feast of customization options. Users can tweak font type, size, and color with all the flair of an intergalactic interior decorator. And if hands-free reading is more your speed, the app’s text-to-speech function will kindly read each paragraph aloud, even if you’ve cunningly moved on to other apps or turned off your screen altogether. Simply find a website laden with text, activate the shortcut, and voilà—an accessible reading experience tailored to your whim. The first time you set up the shortcut, you may be prompted to choose "Reading Mode" if your device has other accessibility apps, and then, my friend, you’re in for a treat.


2023. Audible is testing ad-supported access



Audible is testing ad-supported access to select titles for non-members. The move indicates that the company may be exploring the possibility of an ad-based membership option. Audible declined to comment on any specific plans. The test includes audiobooks, podcasts and Audible Originals. Audible says the test applies to a limited subsection of titles on its platform. Content providers were informed of the change and given the chance to opt out of ads. Users who are part of the test will hear a total of eight ads within a 24-hour period. Audible says it has taken additional measures to make sure that ads won’t be heard too frequently within a short time span. The company currently offers an Audible Plus membership plan that costs $7.95 per month and includes a selection of Audible Originals, audiobooks, sleep tracks, meditation programs and podcasts.


2023. Apple Books launches catalog of AI-narrated audiobooks



In the vast, curious universe of digital storytelling, Apple Books has cheerily decided that the age of human narrators may well be overrated, inaugurating a suite of books narrated by what one might describe as a "digital voice inspired by an actual human"—though admittedly, that human may have been somewhat digitized in the process. This bold, if mildly unsettling, experiment is aimed at the highly lucrative, rapidly ballooning audiobook cosmos, which is otherwise populated by human narrators who possess, one assumes, unique vocal timbres and opinions on the matter. Naturally, some fear this could spell the end for those charmingly flawed carbon-based narrators and has all the trappings of an Apple-sized anti-competition scandal. Within Apple’s sleek and button-free Books app, a simple search for "AI narration" now unveils a cavalcade of these digitally intoned works. And while professional narrators may prepare their pitchforks, it turns out that many authors are already being nudged to narrate their own books, lured by the siren call of upfront payouts and the chance to reach more ears in less time.


2022. Spotify to sells audiobooks



Spotify is entering the audiobook market with its new section, Spotify Audiobooks. This means you'll be able to enjoy your favorite music, podcasts and books all in one location, whether or not you subscribe to Spotify Premium. However, unlike music and podcasts on Spotify, the audiobooks are not free. To buy an audiobook through Spotify, you'll be directed to the web from the app to finalize your purchase—similar to how you pay for Spotify Premium—and then returned to the app. Each audiobook is priced individually in line with industry norms. There is no discount for Spotify Premium subscribers. This feature allows users to download audiobooks that they can keep indefinitely; the platform offers over 300,000 titles across a wide range of genres.


2022. You can no longer buy audiobooks on Audible for Android



Audible is altering their app experience on the Android platform. They are transitioning to Google Play Billing, which will impact individual title purchases; you will no longer be able to buy them directly. Additionally, new Audible memberships will be billed through Google Play rather than directly through Audible. You will still be able to use Audible credits to purchase books within the app and can also acquire additional credits there. This change is due to a new Google Policy for developers, which now imposes a 30% fee on each digital good for larger companies that earn over $1 million annually.