PAVE Studios, a media company founded by a former Spotify executive earlier this year, has launched a publishing wing called PAVE Publishing House and entered a co-publishing agreement with Simon & Schuster.
PAVE Publishing House will release print titles as well as audiobooks from new and established authors. Under the agreement with S&S, PAVE titles will be jointly published under S&S's trade imprint, and S&S will be worldwide distributor for all PAVE Publishing House titles.
"PAVE Publishing House is putting storytellers at the forefront with our innovative business model because we understand that when creators succeed, everyone succeeds," said PAVE founder Max Cutler. "By meeting creators' audiences where they are, we're reimagining distribution and capitalizing on the massive podcast audience where monetization is limited to drive more revenue back to creators."
Jonathan Karp, president and CEO of S&S, said: "Max Cutler and his team have consistently been on the cutting edge of new media, and in PAVE we see a dedication to creators that mirrors our focus on centering authors in all we do. Audiobooks continue to be the fastest-growing format in publishing, and PAVE's roots in audio storytelling set us both up for continued growth and success as we work together to bring creators and their stories to the largest possible audience."
PAVE will announce new titles in the coming months.