PE and Red Audio shake up business publishing
17 Feb 03

Pearson Education, part of Pearson Plc and the UK's leading publisher of business books, and Red Audio, the UK's leading business audio publisher, have announced a new partnership set to shake up the UK business publishing industry.

The audio publishing market in the UK is growing rapidly. Currently at about $115m, the UK market lags well behind the USA where it is worth over $2bn and driven by business titles. The UK market is currently almost entirely devoted to entertainment and children's titles, and has suffered from a lack of UK business product to drive market growth in this sector. The Pearson Education/Red Audio alliance is set to right this with a range of top quality audio business product on CD and cassette.

Red Audio has recently published its first six business and professional development audio products. Four of these are based on Prentice Hall Business bestselling books, an imprint of Pearson Education, and will be distributed by Pearson Education.

WH Smith has recognised the potential of this market and has for the first time featured a Red Audio product in its 'Business Book of the Month' promotion.

"The UK business audio market is relatively untapped and has enormous potential," said Rachael Stock, Publisher of Prentice Hall Business. "So many business people spend so much time on the move, and this new range of top quality audio product means that we can all be inspired and entertained as we travel - as well as picking up hugely practical business ideas from leading UK sources."

Most of the audio versions of the books are recorded featuring the authors in front of a live audience. The audience's questions and the author's role-play bring new dimensions to the original books. The recordings are not straight readings from the book and provide additional information.

Currently available on audio are live editions of the bestselling Beermat Entrepreneur and How to be a Complete and Utter Failure, plus Marketing Judo by John Barnes and Richard Richardson who built the Harry Ramsden's fish and chip business into a global success story. Also available in audio form is a dramatised version of the parable Grass Roots Management by Guardian columnist Guy Browning.

To view our latest news releases, please click here.