I had imagined that I would start this week with reflections on a busy London Book Fair. But the literary world has other ideas. So instead we begin with the latest from TikTok, which is the announcement of an official BookTok Chart, coming to the UK.
ALLi News Editor Dan Holloway
BookTok charts have been trialed in Germany, and the team at Media Control who helped compile the data there will feed into the UK charts, which will be run by Nielsen BookScan. The charts will be monthly and will provide fascinating data not just on what the BookTok community is reading at any moment but on whether that community really has the reach many credit it with (or possibly whether the reach is greater than expected).
It will also be fascinating to see whether there is a spiral effect, with BookTokers creating material discussing the charts and so driving more readers there (or the opposite, with “three great books the charts have missed” type content).
Audible's Global Expansion
And while we're on the subject of expanded offerings, here are two more to start the week. First, Audible continues its “slumbering giant blinking open its eyes as it realizes it actually needs to do something to respond to genuine competition” act. Specifically, it is moving into eleven new markets. The markets, announced at London Book Fair, are Belgium, Egypt, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates.
As reflected in the title of the Publishing Perspectives report on the story, the really interesting one on that list is Sweden. When it comes to audiobooks, Sweden is, of course, the ultimate “other providers are available” market, including being home to the aforementioned “genuine competition” of Spotify.
Substack's Recording Studio
There's also a new toy for those who use Substack to reach their audiences. A studio will be available for web only, where creators can record and edit video to release at a time of their choosing all from within the comfort of a single online environment.
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