E-book Sales Fell 10% in 2017

Unit sales of traditionally published e-books fell 10% in 2017, compared to 2016, according to figures released by PubTrack Digital, part of the NPD book group. The service, which tracks sales from about 450 publishers, said e-book unit sales hit 162 million last year, down from 180 million units in 2016.

NPD reported that combining print sales from its BookScan service with PubTrack digital sales, e-books accounted for 19% of total units (both print and digital) last year, down from 21% in 2016. The top selling e-book among the trade publishers, it reported, was The Handmaid’s Tale published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Adult fiction remained the most popular e-book category–44% of sales in the category were in the digital format–but e-book sales in the segment dropped 14% from 2016, to 108 million units.

E-books have a much smaller share of the adult nonfiction market, 12%, but sales in the segment rose 3% last year, to 38 million units, NPD reported.

The steepest decline in e-book sales last year was in the children’s category, where sales fell 22%. In children’s, the digital format accounted for only 5% of all sales last year. E-book sales were down 8% in the young adult category, falling to 4 million units sold. The format comprised 18% of all young adult unit sales last year.

All the major trade houses, including the Big Five, report sales to PubTrack. The service, however, does not track e-book sales from Amazon’s independent authors. In his letter to shareholders earlier this month , Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said that more than 1,000 authors using Amazon’s KDP platform had royalties of over $100,000. A company spokesperson said e-book sales at the company have continued to grow globally through traditional outlets and subscription services, specifically Kindle Unlimited.
https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/digital/content-and-e-books/article/76706-e-book-sales-fell-10-in-2017.html

Related Posts

USPS Finishes FY23 Second Quarter with an Average of 2.5 Days to Deliver

The United States Postal Service reported new delivery performance metrics for the 13th week of the second quarter for fiscal year 2023 showing consistent or improved delivery performance across all mail categories. The average time for the Postal Service to deliver a mailpiece or package across the nation remained at just 2.5 days. FY23 second quarter service performance scores covering Jan. 1 through March 31, included: *First-Class Mail: 91.0% of First-Class Mail delivered on time against the USPS service standard, consistent with performance from the fiscal first quarter. *Marketing Mail: 94.6% of Marketing Mail delivered on time against the USPS service standard, an increase of 0.7 percentage point from the fiscal first quarter. *Periodicals: 86.6% of Periodicals delivered on time against the USPS service standard, an increase of 1.9 percentage points from the fiscal first quarter.

Bauer Media: January – June 2017 Magazine ABCs

Bauer Magazine Media publishes some of the world’s best-known and most loved magazines delivering entertaining, engaging and inspirational content for readers and significant reach for advertisers. Bauer Media is the UK’s leading consumer magazine publisher by total copies sold and Retail Sales Value. HIGHLIGHTS THIS PERIOD: •Bauer Media is No.1 in the TV Listings market •TV Choice celebrates ten years at the top - the only magazine in the UK to sell over 1 million copies every week •Bauer Media is home to two of the fastest growing magazines in the UK; Practical Photography and Garden Answers •Bauer Media is the UK’s No.1 publisher in the True Life market •Take a Break leads the market and is the UK’s No1 women’s weekly •Garden News is the UK’s No.1 weekly gardening title •Garden Answers has recorded its eighth consecutive YOY increase. Click Read More below for more of the story.

Forecast worsening for paper supply (European Perspective)

Earlier this month PrintWeek reported on the ‘perfect storm’ of global events that have tightened the supply of graphical papers and resulted in paper mills resorting to allocation for the first time since 2001. Factors in the mix are wide-ranging with the surging global demand for pulp being at the forefront, fuelled by its ever-expanding uses in new and existing markets, such as hygiene and tissue products, as well as the backlash against plastic with manufacturers seeking paper-based alternatives. “Pulp is no longer a one-trick pony,” says Mario di Lieto, managing director of Stora Enso division LumiPaper. “There’s a much broader use for cellulose today than just paper. It’s being used for plastic substitute, for clothing, for biomass for energy, all sorts of applications.” As a result of this soaring demand, pulp prices have been pushed up further and further from $700-$750 (£520-£557) a tonne a year ago, to nearly $1,200 causing a knock-on effect across the print and packaging industry, among others. Click Read More below for additional information.
Back To Top
×Close search
Search