“Our listeners are a source of inspiration”

The global audiobook market has experienced an astonishing growth over the past 15 years and is now worth almost seven billion dollars a year worldwide. In the first half of 2024, the German-language audiobook market alone grew by 6% compared to the previous year. 

At Frankfurter Buchmesse the meeting point for audiobook publishers, authors, narrators and fans is the Frankfurt Audio area, which almost doubled in size in 2024 compared to 2023. 

We talked with Colin Hauer, CEO of the German audiobook publisher Hörbuch Hamburg, about what makes a good audiobook and upcoming audio trends. 

Colin, congratulations, several audio productions by Hörbuch Hamburg and its imprints have been nominated for the German Audiobook Award 2025. Please tell us, what characterizes a good audiobook? 

Thank you! We are very proud to be on the longlist of the 2025 German Audiobook Prize with six titles, and with three of them among the finalists. It means a lot to us to be recognized for the quality of our productions.

Good audiobooks add an important dimension to texts. The vocal interpretation of a text makes emotions and atmosphere audible and tangible. Emphasis, intonation and the use of targeted pauses enhance the effect of a story: a true art form that inspires. 

What audio trends and developments do you see for 2025? 

I am positive about the future of audiobooks for this year. It is no secret that the growth is taking place in the digital business, while sales of physical audio productions continue to decline. Our diverse publishing and retail landscape remains dynamic and therefore exciting – surprise successes and innovations are inevitable. 

Genres that are currently very popular – such as the large area of romantasy – will continue to influence trends on the market. But there is always room for something new. 

Special projects that take the importance of listening to a new level will certainly be exciting. For example, combining the audiobook medium with topics such as mindfulness, meditation or cognitive development. Our listeners and their requests on social media platforms such as TikTok are an additional source of inspiration for us that we try to incorporate in our strategy. One example of this is duet readings, which we will be testing in the future. 

The use of AI-generated voices in the audio sector has been vividly discussed. What possible applications do you see here? 

AI is currently not technically capable of keeping up with the quality of trained narrators. Also, audiobook narration is a profession, a vocation and an art that we as a audiobook publisher value enormously. The feedback from the audience is also very clear: They enjoy the human voice today just as much as they did thousands of years ago. 

We see potential for the use for AI in other areas, such as supporting our human creativity and optimizing administrative and technical processes, such as cutting out disruptive breathing sounds or automating repetitive steps. This leaves more time and energy for the more exciting part of our business.

Every year, Frankfurt Audio brings together players from the international audiobook market in Frankfurt. Were there any special moments the Hörbuch Hamburg team experienced at the last book fair? 

For Hörbuch Hamburg, Frankfurter Buchmesse 2024 was a highlight in our 25th anniversary year. For the first time, we were able to present our new stand. Above all, our own events, such as the ‘Speakers Corner’ for audiobook narrators, offered a space for dialogue – a valuable addition to the work in the studio. 

The fair showed us that audiobook narrators feel a very special connection to the book fair and to audiobook listeners. We also brought the event ‘Voices that inspire’ to stage, which showcased the art of text interpretation and narration. Everyone could take part in three audiobooks at our ‘Soundshower’ and experience the impressive performance of professional text interpretation at the audiobook karaoke. 

We want to continue to develop formats like these in the future in order to make the continuing enthusiasm for audiobooks tangible at trade fairs. Overall, the topic of audio is also becoming more visible in Frankfurt from year to year – you can clearly see how much the trade fair audience wants exactly that. So my biggest learning from 2024 and my plea for 2025: dare to do more audio! It's worth it.

Thank you for the interview!

Interview by Ines Bachor, PR Manager at Frankfurter Buchmesse