Research: 2.3m Nordic homes subscribe to audiobook streaming
June 24, 2021
Mediavision’s analysis of the Nordic audiobook market shows that 2.3 million Nordic households subscribe to an audiobook streaming service.
Growth in the region is mainly driven by Finland and Norway – both with significant penetration growth year-on-year. Denmark and Sweden remain stable and there are clear signs of maturity.
Looking at specific services, pan-Nordic services Bookbeat and Nextory added the most subscribers in absolute figures. When it comes to listening, daily reach among 15–74-year-olds amount to 10 per cent. Mediavision predicts that audio book listening will peak during the summer months.
Average household spend among audiobook service subscribers is similar across the Nordic countries, explained by equal price points established by the pan-Nordic services. A high share of audio book subscribers also subscribes to a music streaming service. This is something that Storytel and Spotify likely seek to exploit in their recently announced partnership.
In related news, Storytel announced this week that the company will strengthen its position as a distributor, producer, and publisher in Finland with the acquisition of Finnish publisher Aula & Co. Storytel is already the owner of the third largest publisher in Finland, Gummerus, since 2019.