American Booksellers Association and Libro.fm
Partner for Sale of Digital Audiobooks Through Independent Bookstores
Popular Format Now Purchase Option on Indie Websites’ Product Pages
WHITE PLAINS, NY, November 9, 2016 – The American Booksellers Association, the national trade group for independent bookstores, and Libro.fm, the digital audiobook provider, have announced a marketing partnership coupled with the integration of Libro.fm with hundreds of ABA’s IndieCommerce platform websites, enabling the convenient purchase of digital audiobooks. Customers now have an option to purchase digital audiobooks – as well as print and ebooks – while supporting their local, independent bookstore, and as an alternative to Amazon’s Audible.com.
“The continued growth in sales of digital audiobooks has been very good news for writers and readers. And the integration of Libro.fm with IndieCommerce now means that these online sales can be very good news for independent bookstores as well. ABA is grateful for all the work that Libro.fm has done, and for their commitment to the indie channel,” said Oren Teicher, ABA CEO.
With the IndieCommerce integration, the digital audiobook appears on the IndieCommerce product page for titles available in that format; Libro.fm supplies the shopping cart and fulfillment via a store co-branded white label site, and the company is working to ensure that sales tax is being collected in all relevant states. Libro.fm will also provide a link back from the white label site to the referring store for purchase of the print book.
“We created Libro.fm because independent stores were getting left behind in the soaring growth of digital audiobooks, the fastest growing category in publishing,” said Libro.fm CEO Mark Pearson. “The IndieCommerce integration makes it seamless for a bookstore to sell both print and audio editions through their website as well as their Libro.fm co-branded storefront.”
More than 160 ABA member stores are currently selling audiobooks through Libro.fm; additional stores are expected to sign on to the program. Libro.fm helps the bookstore promote digital audiobooks through in-store and online marketing with a full catalog of resources.
According to Len Vlahos, incoming owner of the Tattered Cover, Denver, “With digital audiobooks being one of the fastest growing segments of the publishing industry, Tattered Cover was hungry for a solution. Libro.fm is a turnkey, seamless service, which provides our customers with a broad selection of digital audio at competitive prices. The only piece missing was the connection to our website, so the IndieCommerce integration is very welcome news indeed.”
About the American Booksellers Association (www.BookWeb.org)
Founded in 1900, the American Booksellers Association is a not-for-profit trade association devoted to meeting the needs of its core members—independently owned bookstores with storefront locations—through education, information dissemination, business products and services, and advocacy. ABA exists to protect and promote the interests of independent retail book businesses, as well as to protect the First Amendment rights of every American. The association actively supports free speech, literacy, and programs that support local and independent retail shops. A board of 10 booksellers governs the Association. ABA is headquartered in White Plains, New York.
IndieCommerce is ABA's e-commerce platform for independent bookstores. The system provides the tools for indie bookstores to create unique, content-rich, and easy-to-operate, fully transactional ecommerce websites.
Contact: Dan Cullen, Senior Strategy Officer, [email protected], 914-406-7560
About Libro.fm (www.libro.fm):
Libro.fm is the independent store for digital audiobooks. Libro.fm is based in Seattle, WA, and offers tens of thousands of DRM-free digital audiobooks, available for download and through its free iOS and Android apps. With a mission to encourage people to "choose indie," Libro.fm has created both a high quality product with its DRM-free model, and a platform that allows independent bookstores to remain competitive as audiobook sales continue to rise.
Contact: Mark Pearson, CEO, [email protected], 413-206-9290