app starts trial with audiobooks
Spotify also wants to start offering audiobooks. The music service has started a trial that allows you to listen to nine classical books for free (in English), including Passing by Nella Larsen and Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.
Read on after the ad.
Spotify starts trial with audiobooks
The company did not release the announcement itself; website The Hollywood Reporter the news came on track. Spotify has put a total of nine audiobooks online:
The audiobooks are divided into chapters and available in English only. Some titles are voiced by a celebrity. YouTuber David Dobrik, for example, reads Frankenstein’s story and Kate Chopin’s book (The Awakening) is read by actress Hillary Swank. The life story of Frederick Douglass is narrated by actor Forest Whittaker.
All titles are recorded in English. It is unclear whether Spotify will also publish audiobooks in other languages in the future. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the test should show whether Spotify users are interested in audiobooks. If listened to a lot, the service would plan to add more titles.
Spotify wants to become an audio company
Spotify became known as a music service, but has been spreading its wings for some time. For example, the company acquired podcast company Anchor and podcast producer Gimlet and then expressed its ambition to become an ‘audio company’, rather than just a music streaming service.
It is not the first time that Spotify has entered the world of audiobooks. The first part of the Harry Potter series was published earlier. The chapters were recorded by the actors and actresses from the films.
