ACX
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersNewark, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What ACX does
ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange) is a web-based marketplace, founded in 2011 and wholly owned by Audible, Inc. (an Amazon subsidiary), that connects rights holders—independent authors, literary agents, and publishers—with a network of more than one million narrators and production studios to produce retail-ready audiobooks. The platform supports the full production workflow: title claiming, narrator search and audition, flexible payment negotiation (per finished hour, royalty share, or hybrid), human quality-assurance review, and distribution exclusively to Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books/iTunes. Supporting tools include ACX Audio Lab for audio file analysis across eight technical metrics, royalty tracking dashboards, promo codes, and Amazon Author Central integration.
ACX operates a marketplace-take-rate revenue model rather than charging creators for platform access. Under the legacy royalty structure, creators received 40% on exclusive distribution and 25% on non-exclusive; in April 2026, Audible replaced this with a new model offering 50% exclusive or 30% non-exclusive royalty rates, with opt-in eligibility for the all-you-can-listen (AYCL) subscription program and creator-suggested pricing. Narrators are paid directly by authors via the chosen payment structure. The platform has produced 339,000+ titles since inception, representing 31% of Audible's catalog, and saw a nearly 40% increase in listening hours in 2024.
ACX serves three primary customer segments: independent authors seeking audiobook distribution, narrators and studios seeking projects, and traditional agents/publishers managing audio rights at scale. Recent product investments include a generative-AI Voice Replica beta for narrators, dual/duet narration support, an enhanced listening-analytics dashboard, and the first ACX Author Summit held at Audible's Newark, NJ headquarters in May 2025. ACX is operating with 11–50 employees and is part of Amazon's broader audio content and subscription ecosystem.
ACX firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- ACX
- Legal name
- Audible, Inc.
- Website
- https://acx.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
ACX industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Audiobook Production Marketplace
- NAICS
- Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries (512), Software Publishers (513210), Record Production and Distribution (51225)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Audiobook Self-Publishing & Production Services (Narration, Studio, ACX-style) (MPAJAJAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Audiobook Technology & Services (Hosting/CDN, DRM, Analytics, Ad Insertion) (MPAJAIAI), Audiobook Retail & Subscription Platforms (Direct-to-Consumer) (MPAJAIAD)
Keywords
Where ACX is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Newark
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
ACX business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Audiobook Distribution Royalties (Exclusive): ACX creators can select exclusive distribution to Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books for a 50% royalty rate. This applies to both a la carte purchases and membership listening engagement.
- Audiobook Distribution Royalties (Non-Exclusive): Creators can opt for non-exclusive distribution at a 30% royalty rate, allowing them to distribute elsewhere as well.
- Narrator Payment - Per Finished Hour: Authors can pay narrators by the finished hour for completed audiobook production. This is a production cost paid upfront to narrators.
- Royalty Share Revenue Split: Authors and narrators can arrange to split royalties from audiobook sales instead of or in addition to upfront payment.
- All-You-Can-Listen (AYCL) Program Revenue: Under Audible's new royalty model, creators can opt-in titles to the AYCL program, earning royalties based on member engagement across all listening consumption methods.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Pay by Finished Hour |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Monthly | Royalty Share |
| Hybrid | Pay-as-you-go | Hybrid Payment |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Monthly | Exclusive Distribution Royalty (50%) |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Monthly | Non-Exclusive Distribution Royalty (30%) |
| Other | One time/ perpetual license | Promo Codes |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
ACX product offering
Product offeringCore offering
ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange) is an online marketplace operated by Audible (an Amazon subsidiary) that connects rights holders (authors, agents, publishers) with professional narrators and production studios to create audiobooks. The platform supports project posting, audition management, payment negotiation, and quality assurance review, with completed audiobooks distributed to Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books. The service is free to use; ACX generates revenue through a royalty share on audiobook sales distributed through its channels.
Product overview
ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange) is a single unified platform for creating and distributing audiobooks. The core ACX platform connects authors with narrators to produce retail-ready audiobooks distributed through Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. Supporting the platform are dedicated toolkits: the ACX Rights Holder Toolkit for authors and publishers, and the ACX Producer Toolkit for narrators. The ACX Audiolab feature provides audio quality analysis during production. ACX recently introduced Audible's New Royalty Model offering flexible 50% exclusive or 30% non-exclusive royalty rates with all-you-can-listen program eligibility.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- ACX Audio Lab: A tool that provides instant feedback on audio files, analyzing 8 important metrics including RMS, peak levels, bitrate, and spacing.
- ACX Author Profile Pages
Products and services
- ACX Audiobook Creation Exchange Platform Online marketplace where authors, agents, and publishers (rights holders) can post audiobook projects, review auditions from narrators, negotiate payment terms, and distribute completed audiobooks to Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books. Includes separate workflows for Authors, Narrators & Studios, and Agents & Publishers.
- ACX Audio Lab Standalone audio file analysis tool that provides instant feedback on uploaded audio files across 8 metrics (RMS, peak levels, bitrate, spacing, and others) to help authors and narrators ensure submissions meet ACX technical requirements. Used for audition preparation, equipment calibration, and pre-submission quality checks.
Quantifiable outcome
- 31% of Audible's entire catalog comes from ACX titles
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use ACX
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
ACX technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability3 records
Feature4 records
ACX partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Aggregators (phasing out by end of 2026)minorACX currently allows aggregators to distribute content, but this eligibility will end by the end of 2026. Aggregators are being phased out to streamline direct distribution relationships. Content partners are directed to contact [email protected] to discuss agreements with Audible's third-party team.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
ACX competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- PublishDrive: PublishDrive is an ebook and audiobook distribution and analytics platform serving indie authors and publishers. It overlaps with ACX on rights-holder distribution and royalty tracking functionality.
- BookBaby: BookBaby provides self-publishing services including audiobook production and distribution for indie authors. It is a partial competitor to ACX on the production-services side of self-published audiobook creation.
- Kobo Writing Life: Kobo Writing Life is Rakuten Kobo's self-publishing platform focused on ebooks with growing audiobook support. It overlaps with ACX as a rights-holder-facing creation and distribution platform for independent authors.
Direct peers
- Draft2Digital: Draft2Digital is a self-publishing distribution platform that aggregates ebook and audiobook titles and routes them to major retailers including Audible, Apple, and Spotify. It overlaps with ACX on audiobook distribution and rights-holder services.
- Smashwords: Smashwords is an indie ebook and audiobook distribution platform serving self-published authors with multi-retailer distribution. It overlaps with ACX on enabling independent authors to reach retail audiobook marketplaces.
- Findaway (Spotify): Findaway (now part of Spotify) operated Findaway Voices, a self-publishing and audiobook distribution marketplace connecting authors with narrators and distributing to multiple retailers. It is the closest direct competitor to ACX's marketplace model.
- Authors Republic: Authors Republic is an audiobook distribution service for indie authors offering wide retail distribution (Audible, Apple, Google, Spotify, Storytel). It directly competes with ACX on multi-retailer audiobook distribution for self-published creators.
Broad incumbents
- Tantor Audio: Tantor Audio is a long-established audiobook publisher and producer that produces narrated audiobooks at scale. It overlaps with ACX on the production and rights-holder side, though it is publisher-led rather than marketplace-led.
- Ingram Content Group: Ingram operates CoreSource plus audiobook distribution via IngramCore and Findaway Voices legacy services. As a major book industry incumbent, it offers adjacent audiobook creation and distribution services overlapping with ACX's supply pipeline.
- Spotify (Audiobook Creation): Spotify acquired Findaway in 2021 to power its audiobook ambitions and is building creator-side tools for indie authors. It is a strategic competitor to ACX's parent Audible in the audio content supply chain.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
ACX social profiles
Digital presenceACX financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
ACX leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
ACX funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
ACX M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about ACX
What does ACX do?
ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange) is an online marketplace operated by Audible (an Amazon subsidiary) that connects rights holders (authors, agents, publishers) with professional narrators and production studios to create audiobooks. The platform supports project posting, audition management, payment negotiation, and quality assurance review, with completed audiobooks distributed to Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books. The service is free to use; ACX generates revenue through a royalty share on audiobook sales distributed through its channels.
Is ACX a public or private company?
ACX is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was ACX founded?
ACX was founded in 2011. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is ACX based?
ACX is headquartered in Newark, United States, in the North America region.
How does ACX make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Audiobook Distribution Royalties (Exclusive) is the primary driver. The others are audiobook Distribution Royalties (Non-Exclusive), narrator Payment - Per Finished Hour, royalty Share Revenue Split and all-You-Can-Listen (AYCL) Program Revenue.
Who are ACX's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are PublishDrive, BookBaby and Kobo Writing Life. Direct peers are Draft2Digital, Smashwords, Findaway (Spotify) and Authors Republic. Broad incumbents are Tantor Audio, Ingram Content Group and Spotify (Audiobook Creation).
Does ACX have an API?
No public API is recorded for ACX.
What industry is ACX in?
ACX's product category is Audiobook Production Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAJAJ, Audiobook Self-Publishing & Production Services (Narration, Studio, ACX-style), with a secondary code of MPAJAIAI, Audiobook Technology & Services (Hosting/CDN, DRM, Analytics, Ad Insertion). Its NAICS code is 512 and its SIC code is 7372.