Authors and translators receive minimal earnings from audiobook growth

A study commissioned by the Auteursbond and Stichting Lira involving nearly 700 authors reveals that writers and translators receive minimal compensation from the growing audiobook market. The research indicates that 42% of respondents receive no payment at all from publishers for audiobooks, while those who do receive royalties often find the amounts extremely low, frequently amounting to only a few cents per fully listened book.

For digital loans via the online library, authors reported receiving between 10 and 25 cents per loan on average. In the commercial subscription sector, the situation is even more severe, with only 24% of authors and 6% of translators receiving any compensation in 2024. The study highlights a lack of transparency, noting that royalty statements often provide a single lump sum for ‘audiobook subscriptions’ without breaking down earnings per service or platform.

Factors contributing to these low earnings include strict confidentiality agreements between streaming platforms and publishers, which exclude authors from negotiations. Additionally, the subscription-based model, which often calculates pay based on listening time rather than a fixed price per book, significantly reduces income for creators, especially since books are typically listened to only once.