Reports have recently come in that the Association of American Publishers has just released the sales tallies of the last two months. As it turns out, the sales of eBooks in January have increased by one hundred and fifteen percent as compared to last January. This should really come as no surprise to most readers, as the prices of eBooks have dropped since last year, making it more affordable for people all over the globe to enjoy a book via electronic media. Also, most eBooks can now be read on pretty much any mobile device, or any other eBook reader, many of which have recently flooded the market. The sale of eBooks over the internet has increased from 32.4 million dollars last January, to over 69.9 million dollars this January.
On the other hand, the sales of paperback books have reduced in the last year. Last January, the sales of paperbacks were well over 100 million dollars. However, this year, the sales have reduced by more than thirty percent to less than 70 million dollars. This significant drop is proof of the advancement of technology and that paperbacks and hardcover books are now slowly growing obsolete. Even hardcover books sales were down by over six million dollars. Surveys show that people would rather pay five to ten dollars for an eBook that they can read on their phones, rather than pay over fifteen dollars to buy a book that they would have to carry around.
On a brighter note though, it does not seem like the reduction in sales of paperback novels and the rise of eBooks have affected the sales of college textbooks. Overpriced textbooks don’t seem to be going anywhere, as consumer surveys have shown that students would still rather study from solid textbooks rather than mobile readers. This is evident in the fact that the sales of college textbooks this year were 382 million dollars, as compared to 387 million dollars the same month last year.
