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Audible: Don Katz

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Nov 1, 2021

Guest

Don Katz

Don Katz, founder and executive chairman of Audible, shares his journey of transforming the audiobook industry. He discusses the frustrations of old-school cassette listening and his vision for a digital audio platform. Katz recalls the challenges of launching Audible during the dot-com bust and how a partnership with Apple turned the tide. He reflects on the importance of perseverance in entrepreneurship, the pivotal moments leading to Audible's acquisition by Amazon, and the evolution of an entire industry with over 600,000 titles today.

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ANECDOTE

Katz's Father

Don Katz's father was a war hero and entrepreneur who owned a guitar manufacturing company.
He innovated by including chord books in guitars, making them more accessible.

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ANECDOTE

Mentorship by Ralph Ellison

Don Katz studied English at NYU and was mentored by Ralph Ellison.
Ellison taught Katz how to deeply analyze literature and encouraged his writing pursuits.

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ANECDOTE

London and Music Journalism

Uncertain about his career path, Katz attended the London School of Economics.
He lived with a rock writer roommate, leading to music journalism gigs.

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Audible's Best-Sellers and Platform Insights

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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

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The story follows Harry Potter, an orphan who lives with his abusive Muggle (non-magical) relatives. On his eleventh birthday, Harry learns he is a wizard and begins attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. There, he makes friends with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger and together they face the attempted comeback of the dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who murdered Harry's parents and seeks the powerful Philosopher's Stone to gain immortality. Along the way, Harry must navigate the magical world, confront his enemies, and protect the Stone from falling into Voldemort's hands.

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In 'Invisible Man,' Ralph Ellison tells the story of a nameless black protagonist who navigates the surreal and often hostile world of 20th-century America. The novel begins with the narrator living in an underground room, reflecting on his life and the various ways he has experienced social invisibility. He recounts his journey from a small Southern town to Harlem, involving experiences with racism, a brutal 'battle royal,' and his involvement with the Brotherhood, a civil rights group. The narrative delves into themes of identity, power, and the struggle for self-definition in a society that refuses to see him. Through his experiences, the narrator grapples with the complexities of being a black man in America, ultimately leading to a profound exploration of invisibility and the search for one's true self.

CHARLOTTE'S WEB

E. B. White

Charlotte's Web, written by E.B. White, is a timeless children's classic that tells the story of Wilbur, a pig, and Charlotte, a spider, who form an unlikely friendship. The story is set on a farm and revolves around the efforts of Charlotte to save Wilbur from being slaughtered. Through their relationship, the book explores themes of friendship, courage, self-sacrifice, and the natural cycle of life and death. The novel is known for its vivid depiction of farm life and its ability to address complex emotions and themes in a way that is accessible to children. The book has been widely acclaimed and has sold over 45 million copies worldwide since its publication in 1952.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

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This book is an impassioned and detailed eyewitness account of the Russian Revolution. Written in the immediate aftermath of the events, it captures the spirit of the revolution through verbatim reports of speeches by leaders and comments from bystanders. Reed's account follows the fall of the provisional government, the assault on the Winter Palace, and Lenin's seizure of power, set against an idealized backdrop of soldiers, sailors, peasants, and the proletariat uniting to overthrow oppression.

Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus

John Gray

This book, written by Dr. John Gray, uses the metaphor of men being from Mars and women from Venus to explain the fundamental psychological differences between the sexes. Based on years of successful counseling, it helps couples transform their relationships by acknowledging and respecting these differences. The book provides insights into how men and women respond to stress, their communication styles, and their emotional needs, offering practical advice on how to communicate without conflicts and foster intimacy.

Before mp3 players came along in the mid 1990's, listening to audiobooks was a pain. The number of titles was tiny, narration was dull, and if you wanted to listen on the go, you had to juggle a bunch of clunky cassettes. Don Katz faced these frustrations every day while jogging. He was an accomplished writer who thought there was something special and intimate about hearing an author's words spoken aloud. He wondered: what if audiobooks could be purchased online and downloaded onto a dedicated player? At the time, the concept was so new that few people knew what he was talking about. But in 1997, with no direct experience in tech, Don and his partners launched the first digital player for audiobooks. Audible was slow to gain traction and took a beating during the dot-com bust; but its luck changed with the release of the iPod and a timely partnership with Apple. In 2008, Amazon purchased Audible for $300 million, and today Audible has the largest audiobook catalog in the world, with over 600,000 titles. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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