Image – Getty iStockphoto: Gaudi Lab
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
See also:
Madrid’s Audio Day PARIX: The GSR’s Spanish-Language Audio Event
Report: Spanish-Language Audio Markets See Fast Growth
Stressing the Protection of Rights Ownership
More in the continuing fast news track for audio in publishing—particularly in Spanish-language audio—today’s (February 26) announcement sees Germany’s Zebralution and Catalonian Spain’s Libranda-DeMarque signing a partnership “to co-produce, distribute, and market audiobooks with Spanish and Latin American publishers” using what the two companies say is “a model that enables significant market development, while benefiting publishers and authors.”
The timing of the news is interesting, of course, as it occurs one day before the inaugural iteration of Madrid’s Audio Day PARIX from Luis González and Dosdoce‘s Javier Celaya at the Fundación Germán Sánchez Ruipérez, which we covered last week for our readers.
Also of interest is the fact that quite a bit of the current news cycle’s audiobook and spoken-word action is coming from distributors of audio products. An example of that is Friday’s (February 23) news that another German-based distributor, Bookwire, has opened a partnership with the American John Marshall Media. And Bookwire has one of its “All About Audio” digital programs planned for its French operations on March 7.
Partnerships between distribution vendors have become an attractive currency to these service companies as they jockey for position around the audio-content sector, particularly as that sector is defining itself by regions and languages.
And in a healthy sign for content creators and owners, including publishers, authors, and others, you’ll note that today’s media messaging sees distributors referring to copyright retention by publishers. This indicates that questions have arisen about rights questions around audio-distribution and other activity, something seen as a bit of a standoff last week, with the 11,400-member Society of Authors in the United Kingdom questioning Spotify on points of its rights-related activity in the Findaway Voices by Spotify program.
Today, you’re seeing Libranda’s name as Libranda-DeMarque because that distribution outfit, founded in 2010, became part of Quebec City-based distributor De Marque in 2018. The company styles itself as being focused on “digital content and platforms for culture and education.”
Zebralution, here in its Spanish-language site, is probably the more widely known company of the two, describing itself as “offering a global distribution network, qualified consulting and production, marketing, and data analysis solutions.”
‘Actively Collaborate in the Production Process’
Image: Artwork from the Libranda.com site home page
With service vendors thus vying for position around various elements of publishing’s audio-content components, Zebralution and Libranda-DeMarque today area describing their new agreement as reflective of their “common goal of offering new opportunities to medium and small publishers in the audiobook market.
“Through this partnership, Spanish-language publishers can access funding to produce audiobooks while retaining the license … . In addition, publishers will be able to actively collaborate in the production process, develop marketing campaigns with Zebralution, and distribute titles to [international] digital sales platforms through Zebralution and Libranda-DeMarque’s joint network of channels.”
Arantza Larrauri
In a prepared comment on today’s announcement, we hear from Arantza Larrauri, managing director of Libranda-DeMarque, who is quoted, saying, “Through this partnership, Spanish-language publishers can access funding to produce audiobooks while retaining the license … .
“In addition, publishers will be able to actively collaborate in the production process, develop effective marketing campaigns with Zebralution, and distribute titles to global digital sales platforms through Zebralution and Libranda-DeMarque’s … channels.”
Tina Jürgens
And Zebralution co-CEO Tina Jürgens is quoted, saying, “At Zebralution, we navigate the ever-evolving landscape of the audio market daily, recognizing the immense potential of the Spanish language market.
“We understand that for publishers to thrive, they need to maintain control and ownership of their content, ensuring it reaches both existing readers and new audiences alike. That’s why our International Audiobook Division has taken a significant step by partnering with Libranda-DeMarque.
“The collaboration marks a pivotal move in our efforts to extend the Zebra experience and unlock new opportunities for Spanish-language publishers.”
It’s noted in today’s materials that Zebralution has been developing a model “to co-produce, distribute, and market audiobooks in Spanish language for all digital sales platforms with publishers taking part from Mexico, Colombia, Chile, Spain, and Argentina.”
More from Publishing Perspectives on audio and audiobooks in publishing is here, more on digital publishing is here, more on Spanish-language markets and publishing is here, and more on distribution is here.
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