E-book Popularity

That's quite an increase.

Sadly, I'm not very comfy with e-books. But maybe it's because I don't have a proper reading tool like kindle? Only my computer.

In Norway it's decided that we have to pay taxes when we buy e-books (not books) from foreign countries.

I would suggest keeping in mind that high percentage increases of small actually numbers can be a tad misleading. I am more impressed by the 9% figure but would liek to know where it comes from and if it counts free ebooks as 'sales'.

Also there is no amount higher than 100%

However I did see a lot of kinldes and iPads in my recent travels.

Maika said:

Sadly, I'm not very comfy with e-books. But maybe it's because I don't have a proper reading tool like kindle? Only my computer.

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A popular misconception is that you need an ereader to read an ebook. You don't. Kindle has Kindle for PC; there is also the Sony Ereader for PC. Or you can just buy a plain old .pdf file and use Adobe Acrobat for reading.

Bottom line: reading on your computer will work just fine.

If I remember right, Amazon bragged that it sold 1,000,000 e-books during the last Christmas holiday after their latest version of Kindle came out. (This was before the Ipad appeared...)

What Amazon did not explain is that they counted as sales the books readers were downloading for free. Even free has a sales list of $0.00 in the receipt. I know, I pick up a few for my Kindle for PC program on my computer, so I am sure my pickings were included, though I did not BUY any actual e-books...

Forget where I read it, but I think it was Random House that is predicting e-sales will climb to 13% this year, and that is one hell of an increase from the 4 or 5% from 2 years ago. Still, 13% is still a long way from threatening print books...

Dee Carney said:

A popular misconception is that you need an ereader to read an ebook. You don't. Kindle has Kindle for PC; there is also the Sony Ereader for PC. Or you can just buy a plain old .pdf file and use Adobe Acrobat for reading.

Bottom line: reading on your computer will work just fine.

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You can, but it isn't as comfy as an ereader. Backlighting makes brain hurt...

The figure sounds about right, that's v similar to the numbers I'm getting. Of course at the moment it's 139% of not a lot, but if the trend holds we could see 25% of our business being digital in 5 years' time.

It certainly seems to fit me. I used to be reading reviews forever and comparing before finally making a monster order from Amazon. Today I just buy whatever I happen to fancy. The result is that I'm reading many times more books than I ever did. I'm also less annoyed by "advanced" books since the Sony reader has an inbuilt Oxford dictionary.

BTW, reading on a screen can't compare to an e-book with e-ink. My eyes start hurting from a screen. They don't from e-books.

BTW, reading on a screen can't compare to an e-book with e-ink. My eyes start hurting from a screen. They don't from e-books.

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This. Also, I sit in an odd way when I'm at the computer, so it's hard to read ebooks for a long time (I'm doing it currently, for an author I adore, and it's a labor of love). An ereader looks like it should allow you to sprawl on the couch in abandon, the way I do reading print.

Anybody here read on the iPad? Is the screen more like a computer's or a reader's for ebooks?

I was COMPLETELY against them until I test-drove an ereader in Africa. Now...I will never look back. I got my Kobo in the spring and I purchased over 60 novels since then...all ebooks...most from kobobooks.com and from publishers all sizes. I'll tell you what...it's the most books I bought in that increment of time in years, if not ever. I'm hooked...

DrZoidberg said:

BTW, reading on a screen can't compare to an e-book with e-ink. My eyes start hurting from a screen. They don't from e-books.

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THIS X100.

One point in favor of having a e-reading device separate from your computer.

If you're like me, you work at your computer and relax in your chair. I'd think staring at your computer most of the day would send your eyes bonkers.

I hate to agree with you KTC. Break out the Silkwood.

But as someone who suffers from migraines like WHOA, I have to say, e-ink saves me a lot of bother.

I wouldn't read paper and ink if I was ill, but as I recover, my Sony ereader makes it a hell of a lot easier to read than a computer screen. Perhaps even easier than 'normal' books, because it's greyscale as opposed to black text on white paper, which gives more of a contrast and can cause eyestrain.

Dee Carney said:

A popular misconception is that you need an ereader to read an ebook. You don't. Kindle has Kindle for PC; there is also the Sony Ereader for PC. Or you can just buy a plain old .pdf file and use Adobe Acrobat for reading.

Bottom line: reading on your computer will work just fine.

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I know. I read my e-books on my computer, but it's a computer and it's much bigger than a book. Therefore I have to read while sitting at my desk.

When I read books for fun (not for work) I prefer my couch or my bed.

Despite being an about-to-be epublished author, I still haven't read an ebook.

I downloaded the Kindle for PC, but as others have noted, reading on the computer gives me eyestrain. Plus, I get the majority of my books for free from the library.

But I'm not anti-ebook. I've been dropping hints regarding possible X-Mas gifts (iPad or a Kindle), so maybe I'll finally read an ebook in 2011.

Anybody read on their phones? iPhones or Android?
And what about market saturation for readers? I expect to see a huge increase in ereader sales this coming christmas, but what do the sellers consider market saturation? How many more ereaders to they expect to sell?
If you can predict the max number of ereaders in a market, and then factor in the average number of sales per ereader in a year, you could predict where this wild increase in ebook sales will peak. Is that where this 25% of market share comes from?

It's funny-odd to me how many people are bothered by back lighting. I bought a Kindle a week or so ago, and miss the back light. *shrug* Doesn't bother me to read with back lighting. Is it a propensity toward migraines/headaches that makes it more difficult for some people?

CScottMorris said:

Anybody read on their phones? iPhones or Android?

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For the past year or so, I used my iTouch about 90% of the time to read ebooks.

For me, backlighting doesn't cause a migraine, though I know it might with some sufferers. When I get the premonition that tells me one is on the way, or when I'm recovering from one, that's when I have trouble with backlighting.

In such instances, as I said, an ereader might even be better for me than normal paper and ink, due to the softer contrast between black e-ink and greyish e-paper.

CScottMorris said:

Anybody read on their phones? iPhones or Android?

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I read pretty much exclusively on my iPhone these days (via the lovely Stanza, which is so much better than iBooks or the Kindle app.) Essentially, there are two main times in my day when I get to read: on the commute in and out of work, which is an hour and a quarter each way on the tube, and in bed at night for half an hour or so before I go to sleep. Don't mind the backlit screen at all and in the latter case it's essential.

CScottMorris said:

And what about market saturation for readers? I expect to see a huge increase in ereader sales this coming christmas, but what do the sellers consider market saturation? How many more ereaders to they expect to sell?
If you can predict the max number of ereaders in a market, and then factor in the average number of sales per ereader in a year, you could predict where this wild increase in ebook sales will peak. Is that where this 25% of market share comes from?

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Not entirely sure where that figure comes from, but assume it's just extrapolating the sales trend five years into the future. The other factor apart from the hardware is how people's reading habits might change as people switch over - in some situations, at least - to ebooks; which is harder to predict.

Dee Carney said:

It's funny-odd to me how many people are bothered by back lighting. I bought a Kindle a week or so ago, and miss the back light. *shrug* Doesn't bother me to read with back lighting. Is it a propensity toward migraines/headaches that makes it more difficult for some people?

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I don't think it's as simple as that. I think it's simply down to balancing of various chemicals in the brain. We're not adapted to staring into a light. Nobody is. It's simply a question of how much is too much. The number one e-book reader is still the iPhone which pretty much says it all. Most people don't have this problem. I personally also think there's an age factor. It seems like young people are less sensitive to reading from a screen. I have no idea if this is true or not... but it's the impression I've got.

thothguard51 said:

Forget where I read it, but I think it was Random House that is predicting e-sales will climb to 13% this year, and that is one hell of an increase from the 4 or 5% from 2 years ago. Still, 13% is still a long way from threatening print books...

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I doubt print books ever need to worry about being threatened. Far too many people in the world can afford to pick up a paper book but can't afford to buy an ereader. ereaders and ebooks will continue to grow, no doubt, to 20% market or maybe more. As ereaders continue to advance in technology and drop in price, you'll see more people pick them up. Probably won't become as ubiquitous as the cell phone, but plenty of people will have them and will be reading.

And as a writer strongly considering adding epubs to my traditional publishing efforts, I'm thrilled. The possibilities are pretty close to unlimited.

The Original KOBO ereader is now $99 (in store only) at Chapters in Canada. They are making way for the new wifi faster page turning next generation Kobo. I have the original and I love it. Works fantastic. I almost never have to recharge it. Odd?! Anyway...if you are Canadian, and not particular about actually purchasing your ebooks via your ereader...now is the perfect time to get the original Kobo ereader.

lvcabbie said:

Another major change is Print On Demand.
Publishers no longer need to print huge amounts of hardcopy books that might or might not sit on the shelf.
I'm working with a publisher that sells both. And, in both cases, because of lower costs, I'm going to get a far bigger percentage than through a "traditional" publisher.

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My book will be released both as an ebook and a print copy. I will be getting 40% on the ebook, but not that high a percentage on the print. I'm guessing it's a wash...because of the difference in cover price on both versions.

I adore ebooks because I'm running out of shelf space! I've been reading them since 2002, started on an old Franklin eBookman, moved to HP iPaq PDA, now iPhone (which I use all formats Stanza, eReader, Kindle, Nook, etc), plus I now have a new Kindle. The problem for me is the format. I still have over 50 unread Mobipocket DRM books that I can't read on either iPhone or Kindle so I have to read them on my old iPaq (which has same screen size as iPhone). One great feature about the Kindle is that you can sync up what you're reading on your iPhone (or any other reading device with the Kindle software)...so I can read on my Kindle at home and continue on the go.

I still buy my absolute favorite authors in print.