According to the first "Map of the Audio Industry in Portuguese" by Dosdoce.com, Brazil accounts for more than 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, theSkate, a reading platform and community, has stood out by recording, in 2024 alone, 78 million minutes consumed in the format on its application in 2024 alone.
In total, the company's collection exceeds 5,000 titles in audio, which are distributed through the Skeelo Store, the Leer+ subscription club, and to all those who have the benefit offered by more than 120 companies, including Vivo, Claro, UOL, Sem Parar, which provides a suggestion of a digital book or audiobook per month to users, who can accept it or exchange it for another at no additional cost.Today, the category accounts for 30% of the app's consumption, which totals over 14.3 million installs and nearly 1 million monthly accesses.
"We want to democratize access to and consumption of books as other players have done with formats like music and video," says André Palme, Marketing and Content Director at 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 users' daily lives," he/she/they concludes.
Co-productions with publishersThe Dosdoce.com study also reveals that the Portuguese-language audio industry generates around 30 million euros per year, mainly generated by five activities: publishers (59%), studios that produce audio content in Portuguese (26.5%), media (7.5%), companies that offer audio-related services (4%) and platforms that sell content in this format in Brazil (3%), such as Skeelo.
Although it seems like a small percentage, this last category ends up being one of the biggest promoters of the sector by investing in audiobook production through publishers. Skeelo itself is an example of this, as it co-produces with the biggest names in the country's publishing market to publish audiobooks. Additionally, all the mini books in the collection are available in both text and audio formats.
Among these joint productions, there are highlights such as: “Living like a champion”, narrated by Kyra Gracie and published together 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 projectionsFor 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, which projects a 10% growth for the global sound entertainment industry 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 increasingly relevant for Brazilians and has the potential to compete for headphones alongside music and podcasts, so we want to help democratize it and expand its reach," he concludes.
