Founded and developed in the United States, the global e-book market – digital books and portable reader devices – is on the rise, with e-book shipment on the rise at a surprising rate.
Amazon, an industry leader, provides both a portable device, the Kindle, and the application technology to download e-books onto multiple platforms - PCs, Macs and mobile phones.
Apple's model allows readers to read books through its iBooks platform, using an iPad tablet. Amazon's model has been more successful when compared to Apple's model. People can download Amazon's books onto a wider variety of devices.
Smart phones and the iPads have challenged the market. The price of e-book readers have already declined as a result, as people are able to read digital books on multi-functional phones and on iPads.
Key Statistics – E-Book Market (source: Research in China)
- Bloomsbury, publisher of Harry Potter, reported e-book sales of £1.1 million in the UK in the three-month period from January to March 2011, compared to £1.5 million in the 12-month period from January to December in 2010. Sales were reported at £79,000 in 2009.
- China made up 25% of e-reader sales in 2009 in the world, according to Dion Global Solutions.
- E-book sales in Japan are predicted to rise at a CAGR of 18% from FY 2009 to FY 2014, according to Dion Global Solutions.
- Dion Global Solutions reports that the iPad will initiate a price battle in the world e-reader market.
E-Book Publishers – Global
- eBooks.com, Barnes & Noble, Powell's Books, Feedbooks, Smashwords, Amazon Kindle, eReader.com
Latest Business News – E-Book Market
- Amazon's eBook sales outnumber its print hardcover and softcover sales
- Digital companies rally for dominate positions in the book industry
- Barnes & Noble launches Nook touchscreen e-reader
Upcoming Events – E-Book Market
- Digital Bookmarking Tools Roundup on June 30, 2011 in San Francisco, California, USA Associated Online Publishers Digital Publishing Summit on October 14, 2011 in London, England
- Open Mobile Summit on November 15, 2011 in San Francisco, California, USA
