Audible
Acquired1 known investors
Find your way into Audible
54 people in our graph share verified history with the Audible team — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.
Audible is a subscription service for audiobooks and exclusive audio originals, offering a catalog of titles across genres such as thrillers, romance, biographies and science fiction. It provides monthly plans with credits and an app for downloading and listening offline; this site serves the German market.
Also known as Audible Deutschland · Audible Germany · Audible Inc. · Audible.com
Founders & leadership
Investors · 1
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Audible is a producer and distributor of spoken-word audio entertainment, offering audiobooks, podcasts and exclusive Audible Originals through subscription memberships and individual purchases. Its catalog exceeds one million titles and is offered to listeners in more than 180 countries in 50 languages, spanning genres such as thrillers, fantasy, literary fiction, crime, politics, biography, history, romance, science fiction, comedy and children's titles.
The German storefront at audible.de sells two monthly plans: Audible Standard at EUR 6.99 per month, which allows one audiobook selection per month from the full catalog (selections do not roll over and remain accessible only while the membership is active), and Audible Premium at EUR 9.95 per month, which grants one credit per month that can be redeemed for any title, kept permanently, with credits rolling over until expiry or cancellation, plus access to thousands of titles in an unlimited listening catalog and member discounts. Both plans include a 30-day free trial, after which the monthly fee is charged automatically, and can be cancelled monthly. Titles purchased with money or credits remain in the member's library after cancellation.
Beyond consumer subscriptions, Audible produces original programming with established and emerging writers, performers and production companies, runs Audible Theater stage productions and the Words + Music series, and operates the Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX), a marketplace through which content creators produce audiobooks and connect with narrators and producers.
Founding story
Audible was founded in 1995 after Don Katz, jogging in Riverside Park in Manhattan with a cassette player, conceived of downloadable digital files as a better way to listen to books on the go. Katz had worked as a narrative nonfiction writer for roughly two decades — beginning at Rolling Stone at age 23 and later writing for The New Republic — before turning to entrepreneurship; he has said early backers were skeptical of the concept.
Business model
Audible sells monthly memberships that bundle a title selection or a redeemable credit with access to a catalog of included listening, alongside à la carte audiobook purchases at full price. It also produces and owns original content, and operates ACX as a platform connecting rights holders with narrators and producers.
Recurring monthly subscription fees (in Germany, EUR 6.99 for Standard and EUR 9.95 for Premium, each following a 30-day free trial) plus one-off purchases of additional audiobooks.
Traction
Listeners consumed nearly 6 billion hours of content globally on Audible in 2025. The catalog exceeds one million titles, and the service reaches members in more than 180 countries in 50 languages. In 2008 the company reported approximately 160 employees.
Latest developments
Announced Audible Originals include "Exoplanet," a time-travel survival story written by Benjamin Percy and executive produced by Andy Weir with a cast including Anthony Mackie, Ariana DeBose and John Leguizamo, and "A Great Book with Barack Obama," a podcast debuting exclusively on Audible on September 24, 2026 in which the former president discusses books with six guests. Audible Theater announced the New York premiere of the headphone horror play "A Ghost in Your Ear," written and directed by Jamie Armitage, running at Audible's Minetta Lane Theatre from September and to be released globally as an Audible Original.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
Described as a leading producer and provider of audio storytelling, serving members in over 180 countries in 50 languages with a catalog of more than a million titles; at the time of the 2008 Amazon agreement it was characterized as the leading online provider of premium digital spoken-word audio content.
Exclusive Audible Originals and award-winning productions spanning short-form podcasts to long-form audiobooks, multicast immersive productions, Audible Theater stagings and the Words + Music series, combined with a large multi-language catalog and creator-facing infrastructure through ACX.
Technology
An apps-and-download platform with offline listening, variable narration speed, a sleep timer and a simplified Car Mode interface. Audible has worked on spatial audio with Dolby Atmos and integrated Alexa voice controls into its app. Historically it shipped the first commercially available portable digital audio player (Audible MobilePlayer, 1997) and the Audible Otis player (2001).
Go-to-market
Direct-to-consumer via localized country storefronts and a mobile app, led by a 30-day free trial that converts to a paid monthly membership; country- and language-specific sites cover the Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Africa. Content partnerships with high-profile authors, performers and production companies, and creator programs such as the Audible Podcast Development Program, Emerging Playwrights Fund and Indigenous Writers' Circle support acquisition and catalog growth.
Consumer listeners of audiobooks, audio drama and podcasts across genres including thrillers, fantasy, fiction, crime, politics, biography, history, romance, science fiction, comedy and children's content, reached during commutes, travel, chores and offline listening.
Geography
Global, with localized storefronts for the United States, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Poland, Sweden, Australia, India, Japan, Türkiye and South Africa. Global headquarters are in Newark, New Jersey; in 2008 the company also had a London office. The German market is served through audible.de, and the company reports hubs in multiple cities worldwide.
History
Audible Inc. was founded in 1995. In 1997 it released the Audible MobilePlayer, described as the world's first commercially available portable digital audio player, and launched audible.com. The company went public on NASDAQ in 1999 and introduced a flat monthly membership model in 2000. In 2001 it launched a weekly downloadable audio program with Robin Williams and introduced the Audible Otis player. It signed a deal to supply audiobooks to iTunes in 2003, launched its German service in 2004 with a catalog of 250 German audiobooks, and launched UK and French services in 2005. The global headquarters moved to Newark, New Jersey in 2007. On January 31, 2008, Amazon.com announced an agreement to acquire Audible for $11.50 per share in cash, an aggregate transaction value of about $300 million.
Compiled by commissioned research from 8 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 11
launches, deals, and filingsA podcast hosted by President Barack Obama exploring books that shaped his life, joined by six guests.
Headphone horror play written and directed by Jamie Armitage, with a limited run at Audible's Minetta Lane Theatre beginning in September, to be recorded and released globally as an Audible Original.
Amazon.com announced an agreement to acquire Audible Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBL) through a cash tender offer of $11.50 per share, assuming Audible's outstanding stock-based awards, for an aggregate transaction value of approximately $300 million including Audible's cash and short-term investments at closing. The deal was subject to regulatory and customary closing conditions and expected to close by the second quarter of 2008.
$300M source ↗
Audible Germany launched with a catalog of 250 German audiobooks, described as the first step in serving customers globally.
Audible introduced a membership model giving customers access to its catalog for a flat monthly fee.
Audible debuted what it describes as the world's first commercially available portable digital audio player; the first audiobook downloaded was "Men are From Mars, Women are From Venus."
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
▸Research sources · 8
primary sources listed
- Audibleaudible.de · web
8 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Audible do?
- Audible is a producer and subscription provider of audiobooks, podcasts and original audio, with a German service at audible.de.
- Who founded Audible?
- Audible was founded by Don Katz.
- Who are Audible's investors?
- Audible's investors include BLN Capital.