The monthly release of ebook sales figures by the IDPF provides a regular reminder about how fast this market is growing and it always provokes me to project the curve into the future and think about the implications. It was an IDPF data release that triggered the thought that we needed a “Tipping Points” panel […]
Ebook growth continues to accelerate; how long can this go on?
A busy day today, but time for some very quick and simple math. The IDPF’s figures for January show nearly a 4-fold increase in ebook sales over the prior January. Recent reports suggests that ebook sales are now in the 3%+ range for some big publishers. But that’s a bit of an understatement of reality because so […]
What it will mean when the ebook comes first
The “ebook tipping point” has recently been a frequent subject of discussion for me. I started out thinking about the business implications and that’s the main focus of the panel discussion on the subject at Digital Book World. As I mentioned briefly in my last post, I have lately been turning my thinking to a […]
A coming new obsession: how to handle a smaller print-book business
Here’s a prediction that has almost no chance of being wrong. Every major player in the trade book industry is about to develop a new obsession: how must our business model change when we reach a level of ebook sales that is dynamically disruptive to the print book ecosystem? This might not be exactly a […]
Ebook growth explosive; serious disruptions around the corner
The news about trade ebook sales growth continues apace. The IDPF has just said that sales in June 2009 were up 136% over June a year ago. Calendar year sales to date are up about 150% over 2008. Anecdotal information from big trade houses suggests that ebook sales are approaching 3% of total sales. But […]