Spotify has unveiled a €1 million (approximately US$1.14 million) investment to enhance audiobook production in non-English languages, starting with French and Dutch.
The initiative will help grow the audiobook market in regions where the format remains relatively underdeveloped. Spotify will partner with local authors, publishers, and narrators to support this expansion and produce more titles. It will also leverage digital voice narration to reduce production costs, with AI-narrated content clearly labeled for transparency.
Audiobooks represent less than 3% of all French-language books—only around 20,000 titles out of 750,000. In the Netherlands, the figure stands at about 15,000 out of 209,000 total titles.
Importantly, all audiobooks created under this initiative will be nonexclusive and distributed across Spotify and other platforms.
With this investment, Spotify is taking a significant step toward democratizing audiobook access in underrepresented languages. By supporting local creators and embracing innovative production methods, the platform is not only expanding its content library but also strengthening its presence in global audio markets.
As French and Dutch listeners gain access to more diverse and affordable audiobook options, Spotify continues to shape the future of storytelling—one voice at a time.
