Books on Demand

Name

Books on Demand

Legal name

Books on Demand GmbH

Website

https://bod.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Self-Publishing Services

NAICS

Book Publishers (51313), Books Printing (323117)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Genre & Category Publishing (Romance, Mystery/Thriller, Sci‑Fi/Fantasy, etc.) (MPAJAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

E-book Subscription & Bundling Services (MPAJAMAB), Picture Book Publishing (MPAJAFAA), Mass Market & Paperback Publishing (MPAJAAAD)

Keywords

• Print-on-demand publishing
• Self-publishing services
• Book distribution platform
• E-book publishing
• Author publishing packages

Headquarters

HQ city

Norderstedt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Publishing Packages: Authors pay one-time fees for publishing packages: Print (from €2.05/book for personal use), Publish (€39 including ISBN), Publish Plus (€299 with professional services), Publish Premium (€699 with expert coaching.
2. Author Royalties: Authors receive royalties for each book or E-Book sold through the book trade. Royalties are paid quarterly. Authors set their own retail price, which determines their royalty amount.
3. Professional Services: Additional paid services including editing (Lektorat), proofreading (Korrektorat), book block design, cover design, illustrations, and marketing services.
4. Book Sales (Buchshop): BoD operates its own online bookstore (buchshop.bod.de) selling books published through the platform, generating revenue from book sales.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Books on Demand (BoD) is a self-publishing platform that lets authors produce and distribute print and e-books on demand, starting from a single copy. Authors choose publishing packages (Print, Publish, Publish Plus, Publish Premium) that combine ISBN assignment, printing, cover and interior design, editorial, coaching, and distribution to 6,000+ bookstores and digital retailers. BoD also operates its own consumer bookshop (buchshop.bod.de) and an author portal (myBoD) for project and royalty management.

Product overview

Books on Demand (BoD) is a self-publishing platform offering print-on-demand book production and distribution services. The core offering consists of Print (basic printing from 1 copy), Publish (full publishing with ISBN and distribution for 39 EUR), Publish Plus (299 EUR with professional cover design and shop promotion), and Publish Premium (699 EUR with custom cover and book coaching). Authors can also publish E-Books in ePub and ePDF formats. Supporting editorial and design services include copy editing, proofreading, cover design, interior book design, illustrations, and book marketing. The platform distributes titles to over 6,000 bookstores and online shops including Amazon, Apple Books, Google Play, Thalia, Hugendubel, and Tolino. BoD also operates its own retail BoD Buchshop, author portal (myBoD), blog, podcast series, and newsletter.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• myBoD: Customer portal for authors to manage their book projects, publications, and orders.
• BoD Buchshop
• Publish
• Publish Plus
• Publish Premium
• Print

Products and services

• Print Basic self-publishing service that lets authors create and print books on demand starting from one copy, with volume discount pricing and an upgrade path to Publish.
• Publish Full self-publishing package for EUR 39 including ISBN, distribution to over 6,000 bookstores and online shops, optional free e-book conversion, paid probe copy, quarterly royalties, and impressum service.
• E-Book Digital book publishing in ePub and ePDF formats, with optional DRM or watermark protection, distributed to Apple Books, Google Play, Tolino, ebook.de, and other platforms.
• Lektorat (Copy Editing) Professional copy editing service for manuscript review and improvement, available as a standalone service or bundled with book design packages.
• Korrektorat (Proofreading) Proofreading service for final manuscript checks, available as a standalone offering or combined with other editorial services.
• Coverdesign Book cover design service offering template-based Coverdesign Plus (EUR 149 value) and custom Coverdesign Premium (EUR 349 value) with two professional design proposals.
• Buchblockdesign Interior book layout and design service available in Basic and Premium tiers for professional page layout, offered standalone or bundled with other services.
• Illustrationen Professional illustration service for picture books, children's books, and other illustrated content, delivered by the BoD design team.
• Buchcoaching One-on-one book coaching session where BoD experts review the manuscript and discuss goals, budget, target audience, and implementation preferences.
• Buchvermarktung (Book Marketing) Marketing services including promotional placement in BoD Buchshop, online advertising, and PR consulting support for authors promoting their published titles.
• Impressumsservice Imprint service that allows authors to publish under pseudonym or without a personal address in the book imprint, protecting author privacy.
• BoD Buchshop Online retail storefront at buchshop.bod.de selling BoD-published print books and e-books across categories including fiction, children's books, lifestyle, travel, reference, and textbooks.
• myBoD Author portal for managing book projects, uploading manuscripts, ordering proof copies, tracking sales and royalties, and accessing BoD publishing services.

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration19 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Libri-GruppecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1998BoD's groundbreaking concept was developed within the Libri Group in 1998 - the pioneer of book publication via print-on-demand starting from edition 1 with distribution through the entire book trade.
• Libri Plureos GmbHcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPrint service provider for order fulfillment. Located at Friedensallee 273, 22763 Hamburg.
• PayPalminorOthersPayment processing for customer transactions through PayPal (Europe) S.à r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., Luxembourg.
• BS PAYONE GmbHminorOthersPayment service for SEPA direct debit and bank transfers. Located at Fraunhoferstraße 2-4, 24118 Kiel.
• Nexi Germany GmbHminorOthersCredit card payment processing. Located at Helfmann-Park 7, 65760 Eschborn.
• AmazonminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorE-Book sales partner - BoD books available through Amazon marketplace.
• ThaliaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor German bookstore chain partner for book distribution.
• HugendubelminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor German bookstore chain partner for book distribution.
• TolinominorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGerman E-Book platform partner including tolino e-readers and partner bookstores.
• Apple BooksminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorE-Book sales partner - BoD E-Books available through Apple Books.
• Google PlayminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorE-Book sales partner - BoD E-Books available through Google Play Store.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• IngramSpark: Ingram Content Group's print-on-demand and distribution service for independent authors and small publishers competes directly with BoD on bookstore distribution globally, leveraging Ingram's wholesale network into tens of thousands of retail channels.
• epubli: epubli is a Hamburg-based German print-on-demand and self-publishing service that competes head-to-head with BoD in the German-speaking market on POD, ISBN services, and bookstore distribution.
• tredition: tredition is a Hamburg-based German self-publishing platform offering print-on-demand, e-books, ISBN registration, and bookstore distribution services, serving as a domestic alternative to BoD for German-language authors.
• Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing): Amazon's print-on-demand and e-book self-publishing platform is the largest direct competitor to BoD globally and in the German market, offering authors free ISBN-free publishing with global distribution through Amazon's own marketplace and Kindle store.
• Lulu Press: Lulu is a North-American print-on-demand and self-publishing platform offering print books, e-books, and global distribution—competing directly with BoD across its core POD and publishing tier offerings.

Emerging players

• Smashwords: Smashwords is an e-book distribution platform that overlaps with BoD's multi-format digital publishing and aggregator-distribution model for independent authors seeking broad retailer reach.
• Draft2Digital: Draft2Digital is an e-book and global distribution aggregator that competes in the digital book distribution layer by simplifying multi-store e-book publishing—overlapping with BoD's e-book and digital distribution services.

Broad incumbents

• Apple Books for Authors: Apple Books provides a global self-publishing platform for independent authors and a primary e-book distribution channel for BoD, representing both a downstream distribution partner and a competitive outlet for direct author publishing outside Europe.

Others

• Libri GmbH: Libri is the parent company and strategic wholesaler/distributor of BoD, providing book logistics infrastructure (including Libri Plureos GmbH for printing services) and the wholesale channels that BoD uses to reach 6,000+ German bookstores.
• Tolino Media (Telepool / Deutsche Telekom consortium): Tolino is a German e-book platform and e-reader ecosystem operated by a consortium of German booksellers, functioning as a key distribution channel for BoD e-books and a partial alternative self-publishing channel.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/Booksondemand
• Facebookfacebook.com/Booksondemand
• Instagraminstagram.com/booksondemand
• TikToktiktok.com/@booksondemand
• Xx.com/booksondemand

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Books on Demand