That author also pointed out that authors who participated in this program were able to use it to double check the royalty statements from their publishers. For some authors, that buck per copy sold is more than they get from their contracts with their publishers, and that fact is probably going to get to them eventually. I missed this when the program launched last April, but one author has pointed out to me that that honorarium is also a disruptor of the author-publisher relationship. The first was that this program gave Amazon a chance to sidestep publishers and connect with authors via audiobooks, and in the long run that could be worth a lot to Amazon.īut that’s not Amazon’s only gain. In this case Amazon was disrupting publishing in three ways. Any time Amazon does some new book-related thing, their ulterior motive is to disrupt publishing. I’ve written this before, but it bears repeating. Amazon was paying authors a dollar per audiobook, and while it didn’t look like much this was probably one of Amazon’s more subtle ways to disrupt the publishing industry. That program was launched in April 2012 with a pool of $20 million.

Thanks to your insights, we’ve been able to launch new programs and features to better support all authors, including a sales dashboard for authors who make their titles available through ACX.com and distribution of free author copies of your audiobooks as they are released. We are particularly grateful for your participation and feedback over the life of the program. The email encouraged authors to produce more audiobooks and promote their audiobooks in June, the last month in which they could earn the $1 honorarium, and thanked authors for their participation:įrom the outset, the $1 honoraria was only slated to be a one-year program to make you more aware of your audiobooks and their place in your growing book portfolio, alongside print books and eBooks.

This program paid authors a dollar for each of their audiobooks that were sold via Audible. They’re shutting down the 14-month-old 'Audible Author Services'. Amazon Ends Program That Gave Authors a Buck for Each Audiobook Sold – Will Look For New Ways to Disrupt PublishingĪmazon is sending out an email today with a sad announcement.

Amazon's audiobook creation exchange