Audiobook subscription service Libro.fm reported significant enrollments this February, with 275% growth in new monthly member sign-ups compared to February 2024. “This is unprecedented in terms of the increase, and we saw a direct surge after January 20,” Libro.fm CEO and cofounder Mark Pearson said, observing that the gains began the day of the presidential inauguration. “I’m sure there’s a lot to unpack there.”
Pearson attributed the increase in part to anti-corporate sentiment and to Libro.fm's incentives to make the "switch," encouraging divestment from Amazon. “People are talking about canceling their subscriptions to Audible, which we are seeing,” he said. He also noticed “a big bump on February 27, and it’s still sustaining,” with customers signing up for Libro.fm the day before a February 28 national boycott of major corporations.
He also cited loyalty among independent booksellers. Libro.fm, using an e-commerce model similar to that of Bookshop.org, shares profits with indie bookstores. “Anytime there is a new Libro.fm membership tied to a bookstore, the booksellers get a notification,” Pearson explained, adding that Libro.fm has counted “three times more email notifications” going out to bookstores in the past month.
Bookseller renewals of Libro.fm’s services have doubled, and affiliated stores have begun marketing audiobooks with custom bookmarks. “Booksellers are personally listening to more audiobooks than ever before, and that’s translating into handselling,” as well as in-store displays pointing readers to popular audiobooks, Pearson said. High production values for top-performing titles are drawing more listeners as well, with audiophiles unwilling to wait for library loans of such titles as Rebecca Yarros’s Onyx Storm or Percival Everett’s James.
To sustain the momentum, Libro.fm plans to debut a web player that will sync with the listening app. “The beauty of it is that the web player can be streamed through any platform,” Pearson said, enabling listeners to pick up where they left off on their laptop or on the app. The release will coincide with Independent Bookstore Day, April 26.
