Swedish audiobook streaming and media conglomerate Storytel, which runs Audiobooks.com in the U.S., has reported its financial results for the second quarter of 2024, ending June 30. The company's sales increased by 9%, to 924 million SEK (approximately $86m), while operating profit reached 47 million SEK ($4.4m), a significant improvement from a loss of 29 million SEK ($2.7m) in the same period last year. EBITDA rose to 110 million SEK ($10.3 m), compared to 42 million SEK ($3.9m) in 2023. The company exceeded 2.3 million paying subscribers in the quarter, growing its customer base by nearly 15%.
The news of the profits prompted outgoing CEO Johannes Larcher to call these results "the best financial performance in the history of the company." He added: "The continued revenue growth, coupled with a higher internal share of content, and a significantly improved cost structure due to the measures implemented late last year and early this year, has made us firmly profitable, and we are proud to deliver bottom line profitability this quarter."
Profitability comes in the wake of significant cuts at the company, especially among employees. Last year, the company had 665 full time employees in the second quarter; in the same period this year, Storytel said, that number was been reduced to 531. Storytel also recently announced a leadership change, with Bodil Ericsson Torp appointed as its next CEO, effective October 1. Torp, previously CEO of VO2 Cap Holding, brings experience from her longterm role as a Bonnier executive as well as stints at other media companies.
In the streaming segment, which covers audiobooks, podcasts and subscriptions, sales grew 9%, to 868 million SEK ($81.5m), with 570 million SEK ($53.5m) from Nordic subscribers and 298 million SEK ($28m) from other markets. The publishing segment, which includes print and digital books, saw net sales increase by 16%, to 263 million SEK ($26.7m).
The company also sold off the Finnish publisher Aula & Co, which it acquired in 2021, a move described as a strategic decision. Aula & Co is primarily known as a publisher of translations of bestselling English-language fiction, and the divestment may have been prompted by the extent to which many Finns are reading bestselling books in the original English.
In its report, Storytel touted the success of some of its own original and exclusive content, noting that the Danish true crime title My Brother in 75 Parts drove significant new signups in Denmark, while Denise Rudberg's Storytel Original, Her Last Step, was the most-listened-to title on Storytel in Sweden for May. The company has a long-term development deal with the popular author.
"Storytel is still mid-journey, and the best is yet to come," Larcher said.
