It happens in business all the time--companies merge with or acquire one another. In recent years, book publishing has been at the heart of this trend, experiencing some serious consolidation as media conglomerates have tried to streamline operations. Now, two recent business deals suggest that it's the audiobook industry's turn for some realignment.
Last month, Random House, Inc. announced its acquisition of Santa Ana, Calif.-based Books on Tape, the largest and best-known publisher of unabridged audiobooks, and a powerhouse in the library and institutional markets. In September, Holtzbrinck Publishers (parent company to print houses Farrar, Straus & Giroux, St. Martin's and Henry Holt, among others) made known its plans to acquire Los Angeles audiobook publisher Renaissance Media. Both moves signal new wrinkles on the audiobook landscape.
The Random/Books on Tape union makes the Random House Audio Publishing Group the world's largest trade audio publisher. "Random House is totally committed to the audio business," said Jenny Frost, president of Random House Audio Publishing and Diversified Publishing Group. "We have continually looked for opportunities to grow and to do the best possible job marketing into new areas and expand the business," she said of her company's new alliance. She cited an earlier, similar acquisition as evidence of such commitment: "When we bought Listening Library a couple of years ago, we wanted to be able to align ourselves with a very respected name in the industry and a company with a tremendous backlist."
Frost emphasized that Books on Tape will operate autonomously, maintaining "its own editorial acquisitions and strategy" under Ronauld Prowell, former COO of Books on Tape and newly named president of the Books on Tape imprint. Duvall Hecht, founder of Books on Tape, will remain involved with the company as a consultant. For Holtzbrinck, the Renaissance Media acquisition means that the various Holtzbrinck book publishing companies will have an in-house audio division. Renaissance president and publisher Bill Hartley will stay on, reporting to Alison Lazarus, v-p of Holtzbrinck and president of the company's sales division.
Both moves will likely make a shrinking audiobook rights market that much tighter. "It has been a challenging time in the audio business with fewer titles available for purchase as many publishers have their own in-house audio divisions," Hartley noted when the Holtzbrinck purchase was announced. Others in the industry were not surprised by recent moves, either. "We've seen the consolidation coming for a couple of years," said Paul Rush, president of the Earful of Books chain of audiobook stores. "Some rights are going for four times what they were 18 months ago," he observed. "The only way to secure rights is to be able to bid on them; that's why I believe we'll see this kind of consolidation continue. This is just the beginning; it's all about efficiencies in the economy we have today."
How does a smaller, independent company compete in such an economy? "It's probably too early for us to feel any kind of pinch from the consolidation," said Alfred Martino, president of Roseland, N.J.-based Listen & Live Audio. "But whether we feel the pinch or not, we're certainly thinking about it. It will probably put pressure on us to get more new titles, and we know we'll be facing a tougher marketplace. But what can we do other than continue with the strategy we've always had? It's not like we're going to fold up our tents and stop publishing. We will continue to find alternative markets in which to sell our audio titles. And we'll continue to be a bit more creative about getting titles that other publishers might overlook. There's always the possibility that consolidation will mean that companies will be so big they can't publish smaller titles, which could mean more opportunity for us."
"It is a growing and evolving business," Frost of Random House said. "I think it's incredibly healthy to see other print publishers strengthening their presence in the audio business. As more and more publishers have their own affiliations, there is still an incredible amount of publishing going on. Growth and evolution almost always mean change. For one thing, change keeps us all entertained. And change also means that this is a vital business."
