Serial fiction self-publishing site Radish Fiction is moving into the audiobook market and is teaming up with audiobook distribution company Findaway Voices.
The Radish launch is planned for the end of June and will focus on the platform’s specialist genre of romance.
Radish CEO Chang Kim says, ‘We’re very excited to work with Findway Voices, a pioneer in the audiobook marketplace. This partnership reflects our desire to expand beyond the ebook market and offer Findaway Voices’ self-published authors opportunities to reach and monetize new audiences.’
There is no mention as yet of just how audiobooks will be monetized and what payment levels there will be for authors. For serial fiction, Radish pays authors a revenue share from the tokens that readers buy to access the works.
Findaway, as a distributor, offers authors 80% of royalties received from the various channels.
If you are a Findaway Voices author, you will automatically have Radish added to your distribution options which can make your audiobook available to the Radish Curation team.
Radish says it has a worldwide audience of around six million users and is a curated platform available to authors. It’s not actually self-publishing as we know it because you have to go through an approval process rather than simply uploading your book. Writers need to submit their audiobooks for consideration to the Radish Curation Team by filling out a form.
Findaway Voices points out that it offers a route to get your audiobook to Radish, but plays no role in what content is accepted or sold by Radish. The Radish app is available for end users on Apple and Google Play.
Both Findaway and Radish have been recently taken over by giant companies.
Radish, which is a US-based company, was bought by South Korea’s Kakao Entertainment in May 2021 in a $950 million deal which involved taking over both Radish and another US serial site Tapas.
Findaway was set up in 2005 and has become a leading player in digital audiobook distribution and is a self-publishing platform for independent authors with Findaway Voices.
Spotify swooped to acquire Findaway Voices in November 2021 in a bid to speed up its entry into the audiobook market. The deal received regulatory approval this week and Spotify said in a recent conference for investors that it was planning to launch audiobooks by the end of this year.
Spotify Founder and CEO Daniel Ek said at the event on June 8, ‘So, several months ago, we announced the agreement to acquire Findaway, a global leader in audiobook distribution. We believe that audiobooks, in their many different forms, will be a massive opportunity.
‘Today, the global size of the book market is estimated to be around $140 billion. That’s inclusive of printed books, ebooks and audiobooks, with audiobooks having only about a 6-7% market share.
‘But when you look at the most penetrated audiobook markets, it’s actually closer to 50% of the market. So call that an annual opportunity of $70 billion for us to expand and eventually compete for. And just as we’ve done in podcasting, expect us to play to win. And, with one major player dominating the space, we believe we will expand the market, and create value for users and creators alike.’