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Audible teams with 'The Walking Dead' creators on audio originals
Audible's push into original content now includes a team-up with a company best-known for its comic books and TV shows. The Amazon-owned audiobook service has struck a deal with Skybound, the team behind The Walking Dead, to create multiple Audible originals. The two haven't said what's in the pipeline, but this is a "first look" pact that will give Audible dibs on projects that will only be made available elsewhere if the internet giant passes on them.
Audible has a 'Choose Your Own Adventure' experience on Alexa
If you have fond memories of those choose-your-own-adventure books as a child, well, you can now enjoy them in audio form. Audible has partnered with ChooseCo, the company behind those aforementioned publications, to create an Alexa Skill called Choose Your Own Adventure: An Immersive Audible Experience that will transform those childhood classics into professional audio and voice performances.
Amazon adds kid-friendly audiobooks to FreeTime Unlimited
FreeTime Unlimited, Amazon's service that gives parents control over their kids' screen time experience, is expanding to Audiobooks. Starting today, more than 1,000 kid-friendly stories from Audible will be available through FreeTime Unlimited. The audiobooks will appear via software update. The service is available on Amazon tablets as well as iOS and Android devices.
Audible comes to the Apple Watch
Apple's latest Watch Series 4 has enough power to free you from your phone, but apart from music, there aren't a ton of entertainment options. Now, Audible's audiobook app has come to the watchOS 5, letting you listen to books directly from your wrist. You just need to sync Audible titles from your iPhone to your Watch, connect it to a pair of Bluetooth headphones, then play and control the audiobooks with no need for an iPhone.
Audible unveils a behind-the-scenes 'Fantastic Beasts' audiobook
Audible is launching a new Fantastic Beasts audiobook on November 16th as a companion to the movie that's showing on theaters on the same date. It's not another novel by J.K. Rowling, though -- sad to say, if that's what you were expecting -- but a behind-the-scenes look at the making of The Crimes of Grindelwald. It's aptly entitled Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald -- Makers, Mysteries and Magic, and it's narrated by Dan Fogler, the actor who plays the lovable Muggle baker Jacob Kowalski in the films.
Audible offers two of its original audiobooks free every month
Audible isn't done offering freebies (of sorts) to subscribers. Members now receive two Audible Originals audiobooks every month on top of whatever they download using their credits. The Amazon-owned service will make six of its Originals available on the first Friday of every month, and ask you to choose two favorites from the bunch. The initial selection gives you a sense of what to expect. You'll see high-profile titles like Carey Mulligan's theatrical production Girls & Boys, an X-Files side story (Cold Cases) and a fresh reading of Jane Austen's classic novel Emma.
Audible's first fitness programs guide you through workouts
Audible now wants to serve as your personal coach -- the audiobook service is launching audio fitness programs through an alliance with Aaptiv. Each program has a professional trainer guiding you through a progressively challenging set of workouts with a clear goal in mind, complete with a soundtrack to keep up the momentum. The first three courses are aimed squarely at beginners interested in outdoor running and stress-relieving meditation, but follow-ups in the weeks ahead will address more challenging issues, such as the boredom that sets in with an all-too-familiar gym routine.
‘The Butterfly Effect’ explores tech’s impact on the porn industry
Free porn changed the world, and The Butterfly Effect explains how. It's a seven-episode podcast series produced by author and screenwriter Jon Ronson that tracks the wide-ranging impacts of the rise of "tube" sites like Pornhub. The story starts with Fabian Thylmann, who purchased Pornhub's parent company in 2010 and proceeded to buy up a number of key players in the industry before selling it on in 2013. Ronson uses Thylmann as an analog for the rise of free porn -- the proverbial flapping wings of the butterfly -- and then turns his attention to the tornado that decimated the porn industry.
Amazon's biggest Prime Day sale starts on July 16th
If you're in the market for an Alexa-enabled product, it'll soon be the time to buy. Amazon says this year's Prime Day, starting on July 16th, is its biggest ever, with double the deals on its own devices and $100 off Echo Show. There will be more than one million other deals up for grabs, too -- so many that Amazon has extended the sale to 36 hours (compared to last year's 30).
Amazon made a kid-friendly Alexa with an Echo Dot to match
Amazon has unveiled the Echo Dot Kids Edition with a custom version of Alexa that will read to kids, play music, answer questions and do other chores. It uses a new flavor of its FreeTime app called FreeTime for Alexa that includes parent controls and family-friendly features that run on the Echo, Echo Dot or Echo Plus. It will give kids a different experience than adults; for instance, when they say "please," it will reply "thanks for asking so nicely" to reinforce their politeness.
Google Play now offers speed control and bookmarks for audiobooks
In January, Google launched its Play Store audiobook category and today, the company has released a handful of updates that will improve the user experience. Now, you'll be able to bookmark parts of your audiobook that you'd like to return to. Just tap the Bookmark icon and you can easily come back to it whenever you'd like. You'll also be able to control the speed at which your audiobook plays. Slow it down to as low as half the speed or bump it up as much as three times faster.
Audible returns to Sonos speakers after two-year hiatus
It's taken a while (over two years in fact), but Audible is now available on Sonos again. Following an incompatible update the service was removed in August 2015, much to the annoyance of bibliophiles everywhere, but today it makes its triumphant return -- and support for Alexa is set to follow, too. Just add Audible as a service in the Sonos App, or play directly from the Audible app, to get started.
Amazon Echo now reads your first Audible book for free
Amazon has a new way to reel you into Audible now that smart speakers are a big deal: give you a freebie just by asking. As of this week, anyone who's new to Audible can ask an Echo speaker to read a full audiobook at no cost. You don't have to be picky about your choice of book, either, so you can ask for the hot new novel if that's your preference. Naturally, Amazon is hoping you'll be so enamored that you sign up on the spot -- if you aren't, though, you can at least say that it didn't take much effort to get that free book in the first place.
The Google Play store is now selling audiobooks
The Google Play Store has sold just about every media type for years now, but there's one more category the company is getting into as of today: audiobooks. As a leaked image revealed a few days ago, audiobooks are now on sale from Google Play in 45 countries and nine languages. As with most other Google services, audiobooks are available on pretty much any device you would want to use: Android, iOS, the web and Google Home speakers. To play a book on your phone, you'll need to download the Google Play Books app, which until now has focused on text-only options.
Audible adds shortcuts to the 'good parts' of romantic audiobooks
Sexy isn't what springs to mind when you think of big data. But, in Audible's case, it's providing a shortcut to the raciest audiobook passages on its service. The Amazon-owned firm is utilizing an algorithm as part of two features tied to its new romance subscription. With it, you can jump straight to the best bits from a novel (including the "hot, hot, hot" part). On top of that, it assigns a "steaminess" score -- ranging from "sweet" to "O-O-OMG" -- to the books, so you know exactly what you're in for. The playful terminology seems fitting for a genre that's as fun as they come.
Amazon is adding Audible support to its entry-level Kindle
The cheapest Kindle is getting the best feature for those who'd rather listen to books than read them. Based on its listing (as found by The Digital Reader), Amazon is rolling out Audible support for the $80 device "in the coming months." The e-retail giant's older Kindles used to have the feature, but it was eventually killed off like a supporting actor in a soap opera.
'The Dog Whisperer' curated an audiobook collection for your pup
Have you ever been listening to an audiobook and thought, "I love this, but I wish they had more offerings for dogs"? If so, you might be the only person, but Cesar Millan still wants to help you. The dog whisperer is teaming up with Audible to launch an audiobook service directed at your furry canine companion.
Marvel legend Stan Lee is creating an original story for Audible
Comic book fans (and comic book movie fans) are very familiar with Stan Lee, who has a cameo in pretty much every Marvel movie. Now, the legendary Marvel writer is creating yet another shared universe. Variety exclusively reports that Stan Lee will produce a brand new book for Audible described as "Mr. Robot set in John Hughes world."
Apple and Amazon agree to end exclusive audiobook deal
For over a decade, Apple and Audible (an Amazon company) have enjoyed an exclusivity agreement that restricted the sale of digital audiobooks. The deal ensured that Apple would only source Audible releases and that Audible would only sell its work via one platform: iTunes. The practice has helped both companies hold almost unassailable positions in the audiobook market, which led to a complaint by the German Publishers and Booksellers Association (Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels) back in November 2015. After more than a year of discussions with German competition watchdog, the Bundeskartellamt, and with help from the European Commission, Apple and Amazon have agreed to terminate their existing deal, allowing Audible audiobooks to be sold via other digital music platforms.
Amazon Prime gives you Audible streams for free
Amazon Prime members get a pretty decent bunch of benefits for their $99 a year subscription, and the list of goodies just got a bit longer. The online retail giant now offers its subscribers free access to Audible Channels, a collection of talk show-type streams and audiobooks that would normally cost $5 a month.
