Books on Demand
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersNorderstedt, Germany
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
Books on Demand firmographics
Firmographics- 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
Books on Demand industry classification
Industry- 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
Where Books on Demand is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Norderstedt
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Books on Demand business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- 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.
- 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.
- Professional Services: Additional paid services including editing (Lektorat), proofreading (Korrektorat), book block design, cover design, illustrations, and marketing services.
- 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
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Print - Basic book printing service for personal use |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Publish - Full publishing with ISBN and distribution |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Publish Plus - Publishing with professional design services |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Publish Premium - Full-service publishing with expert support |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Books on Demand product offering
Product offeringCore 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
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.
Companies that use Books on Demand
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Books on Demand technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration19 records
Feature5 records
Books on Demand partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Libri-GruppecoreBoD'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 GmbHcorePrint service provider for order fulfillment. Located at Friedensallee 273, 22763 Hamburg.
- PayPalminorPayment processing for customer transactions through PayPal (Europe) S.à r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., Luxembourg.
- BS PAYONE GmbHminorPayment service for SEPA direct debit and bank transfers. Located at Fraunhoferstraße 2-4, 24118 Kiel.
- Nexi Germany GmbHminorCredit card payment processing. Located at Helfmann-Park 7, 65760 Eschborn.
- AmazonminorE-Book sales partner - BoD books available through Amazon marketplace.
- ThaliaminorMajor German bookstore chain partner for book distribution.
- HugendubelminorMajor German bookstore chain partner for book distribution.
- TolinominorGerman E-Book platform partner including tolino e-readers and partner bookstores.
- Apple BooksminorE-Book sales partner - BoD E-Books available through Apple Books.
- Google PlayminorE-Book sales partner - BoD E-Books available through Google Play Store.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Books on Demand competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect 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
Books on Demand social profiles
Digital presenceBooks on Demand compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Books on Demand financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Books on Demand leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Books on Demand funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Books on Demand 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 Books on Demand
What does Books on Demand do?
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.
Is Books on Demand a public or private company?
Books on Demand is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Books on Demand founded?
Books on Demand was founded in 1998. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Books on Demand based?
Books on Demand is headquartered in Norderstedt, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Books on Demand make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Publishing Packages are the primary driver. The others are author Royalties, professional Services and book Sales (Buchshop).
Who are Books on Demand's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are IngramSpark, epubli, tredition, Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) and Lulu Press. Emerging players are Smashwords and Draft2Digital. Apple Books for Authors is listed as a broad incumbent. Others are Libri GmbH and Tolino Media (Telepool / Deutsche Telekom consortium).
Does Books on Demand have an API?
No public API is recorded for Books on Demand.
What industry is Books on Demand in?
Books on Demand's product category is Self-Publishing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAAAB, Genre & Category Publishing (Romance, Mystery/Thriller, Sci‑Fi/Fantasy, etc.), with a secondary code of MPAJAMAB, E-book Subscription & Bundling Services. Its NAICS code is 51313 and its SIC code is 2731.