Was there a Kindle or iPad under your Christmas tree? Statistics point to yes!
Publisher’s Weeklyis reporting preliminary estimates from theAssociation of American Publishersthat e-book sales from 16 reporting companies jumped 115.8% this January, totaling $69.9 million in the U.S.
And it’s bad news for paperback book publishers. Paperbacks were down 30.9% from the reporting companies, falling to $39.0 million, $30 million below the sales of e-books. Hardcover sales fell 11.3% in January.
At the end of January,we reportedthat Kindle e-books sales had overtaken paperback books on Amazon.com.We’ve been trackingthe rise of e-books over the past few years, and so while we’re not altogether surprised by this announcement, it’s a massive milestone.
What’s happening?The way we devour contentis changing. We no longer want to commute or travel with big, paper bound books when we can simply tote along a Kindle. Reading isn’t dying though, far from. Think of all the different kinds of information you consume, reading while waiting for the subway train, in line at the grocery store, onyour computerat work and curled up at night in bed on the iPad. The iPad, the Kindle, these are devices of leisure. They’re large enough to consume Tolstoy but small enough to slip into our purse.
If you’re interested in getting involved in the eBook scene, be sure to read up onEBookling, the disruptive darling of indie online book publishing.
Story byCourtney Boyd Myers
Courtney Boyd Myers is the founder of audience.io, a transatlantic company designed to help New York and London based technology startups gr(show all)Courtney Boyd Myers is the founder ofaudience.io, a transatlantic company designed to help New York and London based technology startups grow internationally.
Previously, she was the Features Editor and East Coast Editor of TNW covering New York City startups and digital innovation. She loves magnets + reading on a Kindle.
You can follow her onFacebook,Twitter @CBMandGoogle +.
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