Soon you can listen to the words of your favourite novel, as Amazon is all set to debut its audiobook and entertainment business Audible in India, people aware of the matter said. Amazon had already started its beta testing last year and the product is expected to be launched during the festive period of Diwali this year.
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Amazon is working to bring in locally produced Audible books narrated in Indian voices, requesting anonymity. The sources close to the company have stated that they are also in talks on reduction in GST on e-books which is 18% in comparison to zero on physical books.
Earlier, Amazon Publishing has announced signing a six-book deal Chetan Bhagat with its first title expected in October 2018. As part of this, it will publish the books globally in print, audio-formats, and eBook. Westland, an Amazon Company, will distribute the printed copies of these books in India.
To this, the sources aware of the plans said that Amazon is looking out ways to develop its offerings in India on behalf of its global membership base. Recently, Amazon closed Audible beta services in India, after piloting the services among its employees internally and select customers last year.
The American retail giant had already created a selection of audio books including top sellers and classics in India. It is expected to increase its selection under Audible during its launch in India. Globally, the Audible services had been synced to Kindle.
Still, there is no information on how Amazon Audible services will be priced in India. Currently, the services are starting at $14.95 per month in the U.S. However, going by the introductory price for Amazon Prime, it is expected that Audible services will be offered at a price lower than the U.S. The Amazon Prime is offered at Rs. 6,000 a year (in the U.S) and in India, it was launched for Rs. 499 a year, recently hiking its price to Rs. 999 a year.
Amazon’s plan to introduce Audible doesn’t come as a surprise, given the focus it lays on India. Its international business for the last quarter increased to approximately $1 billion owing to its continued investments in India. Sources close to the company have shared that Amazon India is not looking to generate profits at this time instead it wants to widen the e-commerce base. Till now, the Amazon has planned $5 billion investment for the Indian market.
The e-tail giant launched global products like Prime and Alexa in India, is now looking forward to roll out new experiences for its Echo Smart speakers, as it wants to strengthen its base in the emerging smart speaker market.
About Amazon Audible
Audible is the biggest audiobook producer and seller of U.S which also sells radio and TV programmes along with audio versions of newspapers and magazines. In 2008 Amazon bought Audible in a deal worth $300 million.
With Audible, one can purchase digital audio books and listen to it on compatible devices like Fire tablet, Kindle, Kindle reading app, Audible app and more. It’s an interesting and fun device on the go especially when authors themselves would read out their books to you.