Audiobooks in Focus: 2026 Market Trends and Emerging Best Practices

The audiobook market continues to be one of the most dynamic segments of U.S. publishing. As production quality improves, distribution channels diversify, and listener behavior evolves, publishers and retailers are adapting their strategies to meet growing demand and deliver better discovery, data, and user experiences.

This BISG webinar, Audiobooks in Focus: Market Trends and Best Practices in 2026, will explore the current state of the audiobook industry and highlight new standards and practices emerging across the supply chain.

The session will feature an overview of key market trends—covering growth, consumer insights, and evolving distribution models—alongside a look at BISG's Audiobook Working Group’s latest efforts to establish and promote best practices for audiobook production, metadata, and delivery.

Speakers include representatives from the Audiobook Working Group. Brief presentations will be followed by a moderated discussion and audience Q&A.

Takeaways:

• A concise snapshot of the U.S. audiobook market in early 2026

• An understanding of new and emerging best practices in audiobook production and data sharing

• Insight into how publishers and retailers can collaborate to improve discoverability, efficiency, and listener engagement

Featured Speaker

LARRY BENNETT  manages North America for French technology company Nord Compo, the leading supplier of composition and digital services to French language publishers.

Prior to Nord Compo, he was President of Distribution at Bookmasters, Inc., where he was responsible for managing the global distribution business, including print and eBooks.

Before Bookmasters, he served as Vice President of Digital Print Media at Baker & Taylor, where he was responsible for developing and managing the company's Digital Print Media (print on demand) business worldwide.

Additionally, he has been the CEO of several small publishing and distribution start-ups. He is a graduate of the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Placing a high value on languages, he is a fluent Spanish speaker, and he speaks business-level French and conversational Italian.