YouTube could soon add audiobooks to Premium to take on Spotify and Audible

YouTube is already your default app for music, podcasts, lectures, and long videos. Soon, it might add another massive feature to that list. According to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, the Google-owned platform is talking to book publishers to bring a dedicated audiobook feature to the app.If you love listening to stories on the go, your daily commute might just get a lot better. While nothing is officially confirmed by YouTube yet, here is a simple breakdown of what is being reported and what you can expect.A big upgrade for YouTube PremiumThe most interesting part of this development is how YouTube plans to deliver these books. Instead of launching a brand-new app that you have to buy separately, the company is reportedly planning to bundle audiobooks directly into its YouTube Premium subscription.Right now, a Premium plan gives you ad-free videos, background play, offline downloads, and full access to YouTube Music. Tucking an entire library of spoken-word books into that same subscription would instantly make it one of the most value-for-money deals on the internet. It also fits perfectly with how people already use the app, listening to long video essays or music for hours with their phone screens turned off.The battle against Spotify and AudibleEntering the audiobook space means YouTube is walking straight into the territory of two giants: Amazon's Audible and Spotify. Audible currently dominates the market with its massive catalogue and standalone membership model. However, Spotify has been shaking things up. The music streaming giant recently announced that it is expanding its audiobooks category to more than 180 markets by the end of 2026. Spotify already offers its eligible Premium users 12 hours of audiobook listening a month. With billions of people already opening YouTube every single day, Google clearly wants to use its massive global audience to compete directly with these platforms.A legal alternative to random uploadsIf you search for your favourite book on YouTube today, there is a high chance you will find the full-length audio uploaded for free. The problem is that many of these are unauthorised, pirated uploads from random channels.By working directly with publishers, YouTube is aiming to fix this piracy problem. An official, dedicated feature would give listeners a clean, high-quality experience with proper chapters and bookmarks, while ensuring that the original authors and publishers actually get paid for their hard work.What it means for users in IndiaReports suggest that the feature could arrive sometime in 2027, though talks with publishers take time and that date could easily shift. For Indian users, this could be a massive deal.India has one of the largest YouTube audiences in the world. Currently, an individual YouTube Premium plan in India costs 149 per month, while the student option is priced at 89 and the family plan at 299. If audiobooks are added to these existing plans without extra charges, it would give users a huge reason to upgrade. However, it could also give YouTube a reason to justify a future price hike.To truly win over the Indian market, YouTube will need to look beyond just English bestsellers. The success of the feature here will largely depend on how many Hindi and regional language books they can offer. For now, there are no firm dates or confirmed prices. If you already pay for an audiobook app, keep it for now and wait until YouTube makes a formal announcement.- Ends