Khaberni - Audiobooks represent an alternative solution to electronic and paper books until their market has become thriving, and thus instead of reading which may not be possible at all times, you can listen to your favorite book without exerting any effort other than focusing especially during lost times like waiting hours in cafes or in transportation and during traffic congestion and jams.
In an expansion of this concept and the new method of aiding reading, the American platform "Audible" for audiobooks and podcasts opened a temporary store in New York City last Friday, described as the first "library without paper books" as it is entirely dedicated to audiobooks. The platform, affiliated with the company "Amazon", is holding this store for a month in South Manhattan.
Crazy Idea
The CEO of "Audible," Bob Carrigan, said during a presentation on Thursday that the "Audible Story House" is "a bit of a crazy idea." He added, "We wondered how we could revive the audiobook experience in an environment that allows for discovering new works and meeting people who share your interest in major stories."
The audio tracks are displayed on ready-to-mount stands that can be used in a player for listening using only headphones. The platform offers paid subscriptions, or the purchase of books individually, and also provides a wide range of books for free to Amazon account holders.
The unique library features a listening room equipped with speakers, where a person can relax and listen to the audio clips without needing headphones. The library will host dozens of events including discussion sessions and meetings with authors.
From Byproduct to Billion Market
Over many years, audiobooks were described as a byproduct of the book production and publishing process, easing reading for those who find it difficult to access printed books, or cannot read them due to vision problems, illiteracy, or dyslexia. However, the scene changed when the market demanded that audiobooks be produced and published simultaneously with printing books physically and electronically, and when marketers used technology to persuade consumers to use audiobooks to achieve multitasking and increase productivity.
This upward trend for audiobooks dates back to the early last decade, but the global pandemic (Corona) contributed to its enhancement after it disrupted the publishing industry and delayed the printing of books, and the closure of many stores, causing difficulty for readers to obtain books for several months. With the imposition of home isolation and people looking for ways to utilize their time, digital books were one of the relief methods, especially with the availability of electronic devices and various applications that allow downloading and purchasing audiobooks without restrictions.
Benefits Beyond the Pleasure of Reading
Audiobooks have many advantages that facilitated their spread and circulation, such as improving pronunciation and conversational skills, as while listening to a book, a person will be able to notice the correct pronunciation of different words, voice tone, and places of emphasis and pause, which are essential in learning any language.
Audiobooks also help in managing time through multitasking, as it's easy to perform different tasks while listening to an audiobook such as washing dishes, exercising, or driving.
Audiobooks also contribute to developing critical listening skills, which include analyzing and evaluating the heard material, and improve attention and concentration because of the difficulty of going back and catching up on what was missed during listening, in addition to the benefits of traditional reading such as enjoyment, improving mental health, enhancing emotions, and building empathy with events and stories.
