Leading spoken audio company enters 2023 on the heels of significant business and market expansion as well as a record number of new titles published, bestsellers, and awards

Landover, MD, January 23, 2023—RBmedia, the largest audiobook publisher in the world, today announced record-breaking 2022 performance. The company entered new strategic partnerships, expanded into key international markets, published more titles than ever before, and produced audiobooks for numerous New York Times bestsellers and literary award winners.

RBmedia Expansion Highlights

In 2022, RBmedia drove rapid growth in key strategic areas. During the year, the company:

• Broadened its vast distribution network through a partnership with Spotify to offer RBmedia’s entire catalog of more than 60,000 audiobooks on the platform
• Continued its expansion into key international markets through the acquisitions of French audiobook publisher Éditions Thélème and German publisher John Verlag
• Established additional audiobook partnerships with leading publishers, including:
  • Chronicle Books, one of the world’s most respected publishers and distributors of books for all ages
  • Lee & Low Books, the largest multicultural children’s book publisher in the United States
  • J-Novel Club, a leading manga/anime and light novel publisher
• Strengthened its position as a leading business audiobook publisher through the acquisition of Upfront Books’ audiobook publishing business and full catalog of titles
• Expanded its association publishing business with a multi-title deal with the American Psychological Association

RBmedia Publishing Highlights

RBmedia remained the undisputed leader in the spoken audio market with a catalog surpassing 60,000 titles in 2022—the largest offering in the industry. The company produced a record number of new titles across its 12 publishing brands—topping bestseller lists and major industry awards. During the year, the company:

• Released more than 8,000 new titles across its 12 audio brands—the most audiobooks the company has ever produced in a single year
• Published the audio for a record-breaking 66 New York Times bestsellers
• Signed multiple bestselling authors to new deals including Danielle Steel, Christine Feehan, Alexander McCall Smith, and Patricia Cornwell
• Published numerous highly anticipated audiobooks including:
  • “Lightlark” by TikTok star Alex Aster, which is being developed for film by Universal
  • Stormlight Archive novellas “Dawnshard” and “Edgedancer” from Hugo Award-winning fantasy and sci-fi author Brandon Sanderson
  • “Young Mungo,” the second novel from Booker Prize winner Douglas Stuart
  • “The Need to Be Whole” by Wendell Berry, narrated by Nick Offerman
  • A new audiobook edition of Jenny Han’s “The Summer I Turned Pretty” series, narrated by Lola Tung, Gavin Casalegno, and Christopher Briney—stars of Amazon Prime’s TV adaptation
  • “Diper Överlöde,” Book 17 in Jeff Kinney’s bestselling Diary of a Wimpy Kid series
• Published audio for award-winning titles including:
  • A Grammy nominee for best audiobook
  • Seven Pulitzer Prize winners and finalists
  • Three National Book Award finalists
  • Four Audie Award winner finalists
  • One Newbery Medal Award winner and one Honor book
  • Three Edgar Award winners
  • Nine Audible and one Apple Books Best of 2022 selections

RBmedia International Highlights

In 2022, RBmedia international brands also experienced record growth. In addition to the acquisitions in the French and German-language audiobook markets, the company also achieved the following:

• Published, via RBmedia’s BookaVivo brand, Spanish-language editions of audiobooks by international bestselling authors including Holly Black, Rebecca Yarros, Chloe Gong, Jay Kristoff, Brandon Sanderson, Neal Schusterman, Christina Lauren and Elena Armas.
• Produced top-selling audiobooks internationally, including:
  • “1989” by Val McDermid, narrated by Harry Potter star Katie Leung
  • “Ten Steps to Nanette,” memoir by comedian and Netflix sensation Hannah Gadsby
  • 25th Anniversary New Edition of “Rachel’s Holiday” by Marian Keyes
• Expanded the audio originals published internationally including:
  • “The World’s Strongest Audiobook” by Eddie ‘The Beast’ Hall
  • “All Creatures Small and Great” by Dr George McGavin
  • “Skewed” by Caryn Franklin MBE and Dr. Keon West
  • “The Red on Revolution” with renowned coach Mike Chadwick
• Signed a landmark 17-title audiobook deal with Danielle Steel for United Kingdom and Australia publishing
• Received a nomination for “Nonfiction Audiobook of the Year” at the British Book Awards
• Entered a distribution partnership with BookBeat, a leading European streaming service for audiobooks

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About RBmedia

RBmedia is the largest audiobook publisher in the world. With more than 60,000 exclusive titles, our audiobooks continually top key literary awards and bestseller lists. The company’s powerful digital retail and library distribution network reaches millions of listeners around the globe—at home, in the car, and everywhere their mobile devices go. Our titles are available on leading audio platforms, including Audible, Spotify, iTunes, Google Play, Audiobooks.com, Storytel, OverDrive, Hoopla, and many more. RBmedia is owned by KKR, a leading global investment firm. Find out more at rbmediaglobal.com.