According to the first “Map of the Audiobook Industry in Portuguese Language” by Dosdoce.com, Brazil is responsible for over 95% of audiobook sales in Portuguese-speaking countries. This number is mainly due to the diversification of revenue sources in the audio industry through strategic partnerships and new business models, such as B2B2C. Within this scope, the Skeelo, a reading platform and community, has been standing out by registering, only in 2024, 78 million minutes consumed in the audio format on its app. In total, the company’s collection exceeds 5,000 audiobook titles, distributed in the Skeelo Store, the Leer+ subscription club, and to all those who have the benefit offered by over 120 companies, including Vivo, Claro, UOL, Sem Parar, which provides a suggestion of a digital book or audiobook per month to users, which can be accepted or exchanged for another at no additional cost. Today, the category represents 30% of the app’s consumption, totaling over 14.3 million installations and almost 1 million monthly accesses.
“We want to democratize access and consumption of books as other players have done with formats like music and video,” says André Palme, Marketing and Content Director of Skeelo. “The audiobook is a format that adapts very well to the mobile and digital routine, being able to deliver the best stories in a way that fits into users’ daily lives,” he adds.
Co-productions with publishers Dosdoce.com’s study also reveals that the Portuguese-language audio industry generates around 30 million euros per year, mainly driven by five activities: publishers (59%), studios producing audio content in Portuguese (26.5%), media outlets (7.5%), companies offering audio-related services (4%), and platforms selling content in this format in Brazil (3%), such as Skeelo.
Although it may seem like a small percentage, this last category becomes one of the main promoters of the sector by investing in the production of audiobooks through publishers. Skeelo itself is an example of this, as it engages in co-productions with the biggest names in the country’s publishing market to release audiobooks. In addition, all minibooks from the collection are available in both text and audio.
Among these joint productions, highlights include: “Living as a Champion”, narrated by Kyra Gracie and published with Ediouro; “Flowers for Algernon”, written by Daniel Keyes, narrated by Ciro Sales and published alongside Aleph; and “The Alchemist”, produced by Paulo Coelho, narrated by Beth Goulart and published with Sant Jordi.
Market projections For the coming years, the outlook for audiobooks is even more optimistic. This trend is reinforced by the “Audiobook Global Growth Report” published by the Frankfurt Book Fair, projecting a 10% growth for the audio entertainment industry worldwide by the end of this decade.
“We believe that Brazil has the potential to become one of the largest global audiobook markets,” says Palme. “The format is becoming relevant to Brazilians and has the potential to compete for earphones alongside music and podcasts, so we want to contribute to democratize it and expand its reach,” he concludes.
