Bookboon
Bookboon is a London-based digital publisher of bite-sized professional development content, offering 1,700+ eBooks, audiobooks, and live virtual classroom sessions on soft skills and workplace efficiency to individual professionals and enterprise customers via subscription and licensing.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Bookboon does
Bookboon (Bookboon.com Ltd.) is a London-based digital content publisher specializing in bite-sized professional development material delivered through a subscription platform at bookboon.com, with a separate B2B portal at bookboonlearning.com. The catalogue comprises 1,700+ titles spanning Personal Productivity, Remote Working, Digitalization & IT, Communication & Presentation, and Leadership & Strategy, with new titles added weekly and content produced by credentialed practitioners (former BBC broadcasters, FTSE 100 consultants, academics). Delivery is multi-format: Professional eBooks (designed for 1-2 hour reading), Audio Learning (audiobooks plus 10-45 minute Expert Talks), and live Virtual Classroom sessions. Underlying technology is a web-based eReader with audio/video playback, OAuth SSO via Microsoft, Google, LinkedIn, and the parent's Access identity platform, and an analytics stack including Microsoft Application Insights, Microsoft Clarity, VWO, Sentry, Intercom, and OptinMonster. The platform is GDPR-compliant and operates as a subsidiary of UK software group The Access Group, sharing authentication, privacy, and compliance infrastructure.
The company serves two customer segments: working professionals (primary) seeking self-paced skill development, and enterprise organizations (secondary) licensing the library for workforce training. Revenue is generated primarily through a Professional Plus subscription priced at $6.99/month after a 30-day free trial, with an annual $5.99/month option referenced on the site, plus enterprise licensing via the bookboonlearning.com channel and an author publishing program that recruits contributors via an in-house editorial team. The GTM motion is product-led growth on the consumer side (self-serve signup, freemium trial) layered with direct enterprise outreach on the B2B side; identity partnerships (Microsoft/Google/LinkedIn OAuth), SEO-optimized category pages, and social sharing drive top-of-funnel discovery. Customer logos and subscriber counts are not publicly disclosed, and the company is privately held under The Access Group following a 2017 funding round with Nordic Makers. Kristian Buus Madsen serves as CEO and Thomas Buus Madsen as Partner & Founder.
Bookboon firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Bookboon
- Legal name
- Bookboon.com Ltd.
- Website
- https://bookboon.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Bookboon is a London-based digital publisher of bite-sized professional development content, offering 1,700+ eBooks, audiobooks, and live virtual classroom sessions on soft skills and workplace efficiency to individual professionals and enterprise customers via subscription and licensing.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Bookboon industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Professional Development eLearning
- NAICS
- Book Publishers (513130), Book Publishers (51313)
- SIC
- Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- E-book Subscription & Bundling Services (MPAJAMAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Digital Learning & Course Subscriptions (CRAFAIAD), Business, Personal Finance & Careers Trade Publishing (MPAJAAAK)
Keywords
Where Bookboon is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Bookboon business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Subscription Access: Monthly subscription providing access to the full eBook and audio learning library. Professional Plus subscription offers free first 30 days, then $6.99/month. Individual subscription model with annual billing option.
- Business/Corporate Licensing: Enterprise-level learning solutions for organizations through bookboonlearning.com, enabling corporate training deployments.
- Author Publishing: Bookboon invites authors to publish their expertise on the platform through an editorial team ([email protected]), creating a content marketplace for expert knowledge.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Professional Plus subscription with full library access |
| Subscription | Annual | Annual subscription plan |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
Bookboon product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Bookboon publishes and distributes a subscription-based digital library of bite-sized professional development content, including 1,700+ eBooks, audiobooks, expert talks, and virtual classroom sessions covering leadership, communication, productivity, and remote working. The platform serves individual professionals through self-serve subscriptions on bookboon.com and enterprise customers via a dedicated corporate learning portal at bookboonlearning.com.
Product overview
Bookboon is a video-led professional development platform offering a portfolio of bite-sized learning content designed for workplace skill development. The core offering consists of Professional eBooks (digital books for 1-2 hour reading), Audio Learning (audiobooks and Expert Talks), and Virtual Classroom sessions. Content spans five main categories: Personal Productivity, Remote Working, Digitalization & IT, Communication & Presentation, and Leadership & Strategy. The platform operates on a subscription model (Professional Plus at $6.99/month after 30-day free trial) with a corporate offering (Bookboon for Business) for enterprise workforce development. Notable authors include Esther Stanhope (50 titles on confidence and impact), Samuel A. Malone (47 titles on learning and management), and Corinna M. Hagen (15 titles on remote leadership).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Professional eBooks Bite-sized digital books providing expert-led professional development content across categories including Leadership, Communication, Digitalization, and Personal Productivity. Content is designed for 1-2 hour reading time with accessible eReader functionality, available to individual subscribers and enterprise customers.
- Audio Learning Audio versions of professional development content, including audiobooks and Expert Talks (10-45 minute audio sessions) featuring industry experts on topics like leadership, communication, and career development.
- Virtual Classroom Live, interactive video-based learning sessions led by expert instructors featuring real-time participation, Q&A, and collaborative learning experiences focused on professional skills development.
- Bookboon for Business Corporate learning solution offering bulk access to Bookboon's content library for organizational workforce development and training purposes, available via the dedicated enterprise portal at bookboonlearning.com.
Quantifiable outcome
- Bite-sized format designed for 1-2 hour completion time
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Bookboon
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Bookboon technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration10 records
AI capability3 records
Feature5 records
Bookboon partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- The Access GroupcoreBookboon operates as a subsidiary under The Access Group, a UK-based software company providing business management solutions. The Access Group owns the Bookboon platform and provides shared infrastructure including identity management through Access Acloud, privacy policies, and GDPR compliance frameworks.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Bookboon competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Audible: Leading audiobook subscription service owned by Amazon. Directly comparable to Bookboon's Audio Learning product offering and subscription-based professional audio content.
- MasterClass: Premium subscription learning platform featuring expert-led video lessons. Operates in the same professional and personal development category as Bookboon but with a premium positioning and celebrity-expert model.
- Coursera: Large-scale online learning platform offering courses, certificates, and degrees from universities and companies. Competes with Bookboon in the broader professional development space with deeper content depth and stronger enterprise positioning.
- Udemy: Global marketplace and subscription platform for professional courses with both consumer and Udemy Business offerings. Comparable breadth in professional topics and dual B2C/B2B GTM motion.
Direct peers
- Skillshare: Subscription-based online learning platform offering courses on creative and professional topics. Closely comparable to Bookboon's subscription eBook/audio model and target audience of professionals seeking self-paced skill development.
- LinkedIn Learning: Video-led professional development platform offered by LinkedIn with individual subscriptions and enterprise licensing through LinkedIn Learning Hub. Competes head-to-head with Bookboon for both D2C professionals and corporate L&D budgets.
- Blinkist: Subscription service that distills non-fiction books and podcasts into bite-sized text and audio summaries. Direct overlap with Bookboon's bite-sized professional content and self-serve $5-10/month subscription pricing.
- getAbstract: B2B-focused book and article summary service with strong enterprise licensing. Highly comparable to Bookboon for Business on the corporate side, targeting the same L&D buyer with curated professional content.
- Scribd: Subscription eBook and audiobook service with unlimited reading access. Comparable subscription model and digital content library breadth, though broader in scope beyond professional development.
- Perlego: Subscription-based eBook platform with unlimited reading access for students and professionals. Direct comparison on subscription eBook delivery model, though Perlego focuses more on academic and textbook content.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Bookboon social profiles
Digital presenceBookboon compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Bookboon financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Bookboon leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Bookboon funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Bookboon 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 Bookboon
What does Bookboon do?
Bookboon publishes and distributes a subscription-based digital library of bite-sized professional development content, including 1,700+ eBooks, audiobooks, expert talks, and virtual classroom sessions covering leadership, communication, productivity, and remote working. The platform serves individual professionals through self-serve subscriptions on bookboon.com and enterprise customers via a dedicated corporate learning portal at bookboonlearning.com.
Is Bookboon a public or private company?
Bookboon is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Bookboon founded?
Bookboon was founded in 2005. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Bookboon based?
Bookboon is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Bookboon make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Subscription Access are the primary driver. The others are business/Corporate Licensing and author Publishing.
Who are Bookboon's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Audible, MasterClass, Coursera and Udemy. Direct peers are Skillshare, LinkedIn Learning, Blinkist, getAbstract, Scribd and Perlego.
Does Bookboon have an API?
No public API is recorded for Bookboon.
What industry is Bookboon in?
Bookboon's product category is Professional Development eLearning. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAMAB, E-book Subscription & Bundling Services, with a secondary code of CRAFAIAD, Digital Learning & Course Subscriptions. Its NAICS code is 513130 and its SIC code is 2731.