Google Play Books Auto-narrated Audiobooks

What Google Play Books Auto-narrated Audiobooks is

Google Play Books Auto-narrated Audiobooks helps publishers turn eligible ebooks into digitally narrated audiobooks. It requires an EPUB ebook offered on Google Play and audio rights for the title in the selected language and countries. The product page lists English, Spanish, French, German, Hindi, and Brazilian Portuguese inputs. Publishers can choose from more than 50 narrator options with different language, accent, and gender combinations, then edit pronunciations, narrator voice and speed, character voices, and pauses. Finished audiobooks can be published on Google Play Books, and audio files can be downloaded for distribution elsewhere. Google says an existing ebook can be converted in under two hours and that publishers receive a 52% revenue share on sales through Google Play. Creation, publishing, and downloads are listed as free for a limited time. Google says narration suits books with limited dialogue and emotional content better than image-heavy or data-heavy titles. Other-platform sales require availability on Google Play in the same countries, and its list price cannot exceed the other platform’s price.

Who it suits

This suits publishers who own the relevant audio rights and want to create audiobooks from eligible EPUB titles. It may be a better fit for books with limited dialogue and emotional content than image-heavy or data-heavy titles.

Limits

Creation, publishing, and downloads are listed as free with no charge for a limited time. Eligibility requires an EPUB ebook offered on Google Play and ownership of the audio rights. If sold on another retail platform, the audiobook must also be offered on Google Play in each country where it is sold elsewhere, and Google Play's list price must not be higher.

Getting started

1. Open the Google Play Books Auto-narrated Audiobooks website.
2. Offer an EPUB ebook on Google Play and confirm ownership of its audiobook rights for the selected language and countries.
3. Choose a narrator and adjust the narration using the audio editor.
4. Publish the audiobook on Google Play Books or download the audio files.

Verdict

The service provides narration and editing controls for publishers with eligible ebooks and rights. Its distribution and pricing rules for sales elsewhere are important constraints to check.