 "Pocket FM")
Audio series platform Pocket FM said it will invest $40 million in its online reading service, Pocket Novel, to build India’s largest online reading platform and make it the default destination for the Indian writers' community.
Pocket FM said it is dedicated to building diverse portfolios across multiple entertainment categories and formats, placing a strategic emphasis on the creation and development of an Intellectual Property (IP) playbook.
Pocket Novel aims to play a pivotal role in unlocking opportunities and connecting writers with millions of readers, understanding the immense potential within the underpenetrated novel market in India. Serving as a gateway for unparalleled visibility and lifetime earning possibilities for the writers, the platform brings massive distribution opportunities across diverse formats and categories.
The online novel reading platform market in India is yet to be explored at its potential, with the global market projected to exceed $6.5 billion by 2028. India is poised to emerge as the fastest-growing market in this space, presenting a promising opportunity for Pocket Novel which is aiming to exceed $100 million annualised revenue run rate (ARR) worldwide by 2025.
Commenting on the launch of Pocket Novel, Rohan Nayak, co-founder and chief executive officer, Pocket Novel said, “We are building an ecosystem that shapes the essence of entertainment which specialises in discovering and distributing unique and unheard stories. These are adaptable across formats and geographies, creating a robust model with millions of audiences. Leveraging our learnings from our successful audio series trajectory, we remain steadfast in our commitment to cultivating a dynamic entertainment ecosystem. Our IP creation engine is designed to produce and disseminate content across diverse categories and brings disruption in the entertainment landscape.”
In its beta phase, the Pocket Novel platform has witnessed its writers' community flourish to over 150,000 writers with the top-performing writers earning impressive incomes, with some exceeding $2,500 every month. The company aims to build a community of 1 million writers and strengthen its library to 2 million novels by 2025.
