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Originally Posted by sirbruce
Way to selectively quote. That 21% decline was just for the audio segment. To reiterate, sales were down last year, primarily in hardback, mass market paperback, and book club/mail order. Trade paperbacks showed a modest increase (probably from people buying them instead of hardbacks). That somewhat contradicts your earlier summation that primarily only hardback sales were down, and that paperback sales made up for it.
I actually don't think ebook piracy has much to do with the book industry's problems over the past decade. Embracing ebooks would help stop the bleeding, though, and find new sources of revenue. Long-term, literary reading must be re-emphasized in our education system.
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Prices have a lot to do with the decline. Hardcovers are very expensive and trade paperbacks are just a way for the industry to raise the prices over mass market books. Trades are an awful format. The size is off and the feel is all wrong. When people are trying t save money, hardcover and trades are not a good idea for the book industry. Just stick to mass market.