E-book sales plateauing: BookNet Canada report

[RZetlin]

E-book sales plateauing: BookNet Canada report

Some interesting stats:

Book sales based on 4,000 book-buying consumers:

1. Paperback: 58%
2. Hardcover: 24%
3. eBooks: 15%

[speakingtohe]

I am mildly curious as to the demographics of these 4000 people

Do they all have and use ebook readers, for instance.

Do they all buy new books VS used.

How many books do they buy a year?

I live in a small northern town for5 months a year and had the first ebook reader in town. Within a month there were 10 that I knew about. They tried mine and came in and told me they bought one. Now there are over 50 theat I know about in a population of 350. One in 7 people seems to have an ebook reader and only two AFAIK don't like them. Plus 2 people who read on phones and maybe 20 who read on Ipads.

Most of these people only buy ebooks unless for chidren but the nearest store that sells paper books, either new or used is over 100 miles away so the data is skewed in favour of ebooks.

Overall I think it is good that people buy paper books and ebooks. It keep the publishers in business, and of course the authors. I have been happily buying books for at least 45 years and want them both to continue to be succesful

Helen

[Rizla]

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

I am mildly curious as to the demographics of these 4000 people

Do they all have and use ebook readers, for instance.

Do they all buy new books VS used.

How many books do they buy a year?

I live in a small northern town for5 months a year and had the first ebook reader in town. Within a month there were 10 that I knew about. They tried mine and came in and told me they bought one. Now there are over 50 theat I know about in a population of 350. One in 7 people seems to have an ebook reader and only two AFAIK don't like them. Plus 2 people who read on phones and maybe 20 who read on Ipads.

Most of these people only buy ebooks unless for chidren but the nearest store that sells paper books, either new or used is over 100 miles away so the data is skewed in favour of ebooks.

Overall I think it is good that people buy paper books and ebooks. It keep the publishers in business, and of course the authors. I have been happily buying books for at least 45 years and want them both to continue to be succesful

Helen

5 months a year and a population of 350 in a northern town? Sounds like you are working seasonally in Inuit country. I imagine the above stats are being heavily affected by the bulk of the population in the densely populated regions down south. If my supposition is correct, you're experience is not representative of the vast majority of the population.

The other thing is, Amazon hasn't taken off in Canada like it has in countries with larger denser populations like the USA and Europe. It seems to me that Amazon (and a lot of other corporations) don't perceive Canada as a market lucrative enough to pursue. Quebec insisting on everything being in French further discourages 'investment.'

I've noticed recently that if you try to ship a used pbook from the USA to Canada or the UK, shipping to Canada is more! It's almost like US sellers don't want to do business with Canada. Very odd. Again, maybe the size of the market discourages them (particularly after subtracting 7 million francophones).

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by Rizla

5 months a year and a population of 350 in a northern town? Sounds like you are working seasonally in Inuit country. I imagine the above stats are being heavily affected by the bulk of the population in the densely populated regions down south. If my supposition is correct, you're experience is not representative of the vast majority of the population.

The other thing is, Amazon hasn't taken off in Canada like it has in countries with larger denser populations like the USA and Europe. It seems to me that Amazon (and a lot of other corporations) don't perceive Canada as a market lucrative enough to pursue. Quebec insisting on everything being in French further discourages 'investment.'

I've noticed recently that if you try to ship a used pbook from the USA to Canada or the UK, shipping to Canada is more! It's almost like US sellers don't want to do business with Canada. Very odd. Again, maybe the size of the market discourages them (particularly after subtracting 7 million francophones).

Well I have worked in Inuit country and people do read more in the north I think due perhaps to the lack of other popular entertainment in remote locations.

Shipping is more expensive to Canada I think and within Canada AFAIK I think it is the shiippers such as puralotor, Fedex etc. who charge a higher rate.

I do spend my winters in Vancouver and among the people I know (a lot less than 4000) Amazon is very popular, especially the US site. A lot of things you can't buy in Canada, you can buy from Amazon. so we just pay the shipping if we want it.

Still Canadians are overall very into technology and reportedly had the highest internet usage per capita in the world about a year ago so I am a bit surprised at the result of the survey.

Helen

[taming]

There is an interesting infographic from Book Net here: http://www.booknetcanada.ca/blog/201...l#.UZ4197WsiSo

Highlights (well for me)

• 1 in 3 Canadians bought a book in the month they were surveyed.
• 18% bought an ebook, 87% a print book ( note that some folks seem to buy both)
• In 2009, 16 % had purchased books on line (though not necessarily ebooks)
• In 2012, 25% had done so
• Average price paid: Hardcovers, 19.49; paperback, 12.59; ebooks, 6.97