Spotify already offers more than 500,000 audiobooks, and it’s planning to add some physical copies to its library. A partnership with Bookshop.org will let readers order books through the Spotify app.
Once purchased, the books will be synced up with the buyer’s Spotify account. Through a feature called Page Match, those users will be able to switch between their physical copies and the corresponding audiobook versions. Page Match prompts users to take a photo of the page they’re currently reading. Spotify then scans that image to find the same point in the audiobook. It’s clever technology that still may have some kinks to iron out.
With its “reverse Amazon” maneuver, Spotify is positioning itself to chase more of the creator partnerships it covets. On platforms like YouTube and TikTok, literary discourse has become big enough to give brick-and-mortar bookstores a much-needed pick-me-up. By aligning itself with communities like #BookTok, Spotify can build new cross-promotional opportunities that leverage its expanding monetization ecosystem.
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In a blog post announcing the Bookshop.org partnership, Spotify noted that physical books accounted for 73% of trade publishing revenue last year. By tapping into that audience, Spotify can appeal to Gen Z’s long-held affinity for physical books while also giving its users freedom to read and/or listen as they see fit.
Bookshop.org connects readers to their local independent booksellers. “We are excited to see the impact Spotify’s scale will have for local bookstores,” said Bookshop.org Founder and CEO Andy Hunter in a statement. “By meeting readers where they are and linking to Bookshop.org, Spotify is financially supporting indie booksellers with each purchase.”
For Spotify, breaking into bookstores might not be as easy as it seems. TikTok’s attempt to get into publishing, 8th Note Press, ended with a quiet shuttering last year. It’s hard to say how much of 8th Note’s demise can be attributed to internal TikTok decisions, but we’ll see if Spotify fares better when it kicks off its Bookshop.org integration in the spring.
