Just a brief outline of some statistics and sources that I used during my section of the LIKE debate on 29/11/12

1. Notes for eBooks debate at
#LIKE40

2. Please note:
• These are just jottings which some people
expressed an interest in looking at and I
wanted to publish details and
acknowledgements of the work of others
which I used on the evening.

3. Popularity
• 21% of Americans read an ebook in 2011-2
• Sales of e-books were up 188% on same
period in 2011, non-fiction up 128%
• Ditigal sales of general consumer titles up
from £30 mil to £84 Mil over 2011/12 period
• Print dipped by less than .5%
• Number sold down by 3.8%
• Publisher Association Figures

4. Popularity
• Growth in e-book consumption is being driven by older
readers, particularly those aged 45-54. Just over a
quarter of this age group bought an e-book in the six
months to March 2012, up from 17% in November
2011. Men are more likely than women to buy e-
books, but women buy more and also download more
free titles.
• Children aged 10 and under are reading e-books on
laptops rather than dedicated e-readers, according to
the study. However from the age of 11, the Kindle
becomes their most widely used device.

5. In libraries
• eBook borrowers read an average of 29 books,
compared to 23 books for readers who do not
borrow ebooks from a library
• 42% of ebook borrowers get recommendations
from librarians.
• The total number of e-books borrowed from UK
public libraries through the leading Overdrive e-
lending platform has jumped up from 169,071 in
2010 to 576,125 to November this year, although
this is still tiny compared to 300.2 million actual
books borrowed in 2010/11.

6. Libraries turn readers into buyers
• 41% of those who borrow ebooks from libraries
purchased their most recent ebook
• 56% of ebook readers with library cards
preferred to buy ebooks. 46% of library cards
holds said they preferred to buy print books.
• 35% of respondents have purchased a book (print
or e) after borrowing that title.
• 44% of Library users digital book purchases have
increased in the last 6 months.
• 57% said the public library is their primary source
of book discovery.

7. Ebooks are broken
• Amazon takes approx 70% of the ebook market
in the US, so there is a lack of purchasing
alternatives
• There are too many proprietary formats.
• DRM frustrates paying customers and does
nothing to thwart pirates. But they would not
buy the product anyway, so they’re not lost
customers. Why not focus on maximizing
revenue from customers? Ditch DRM. This will
accelerate sales.

8. Broken
• We don’t own our ebooks
– Leased, not owned. Cannot lend, give away
• Barnes & Noble decides that purchased ebooks
are only yours until your credit card expires
– Publishers encourage piracy
– DRM frustrates paying customers and does nothing to
thwart pirates. But they would not buy the product
anyway, so they’re not lost customers. Why not focus
on maximizing revenue from customers? Ditch DRM.
This will accelerate sales.

9. Gaiman
• Neil Gaiman:
• "Places where I was being pirated -- particularly Russia
(where people were translating my stuff into Russian and
spreading it out into the world) I was selling more and more
books. People were discovering me through being pirated.
And then they were going out and buying the real books,
and when a new book would come out in Russia it would
sell more and more copies."
• He then mentions that after a lot of persuading, he got his
publisher to release a free digital copy of American Gods,
and sales went up by 300%, even though it had already
been selling quite well before that.

10. Problem for libraries
• Publishers are preventing libraries from buying and loaning ebooks,
or charging them up to 300% the cost of a print book.
• 50 shades of grey $9.99 for electronic version, Libs $47.85,
trilogy is $29.99 for consumers, but $89.97 for libraries.
• Hachette, Tom Wolfe’s publisher doubled the price on its
books, Random House tripled.
• Books may only be made available 6 months after their release
date (Penguin trial system in US) and only for a year.
• Only loaned 26 times
• Of the USA Today best seller list none of the top five, and only 6 out
of 25 are available to libraries, according to Douglas County Library.

11. • “When it’s as easy to buy a book as to click a
button and borrow one, a lot more people are
going to take the borrowing option. That has
serious implications for authors and their
royalties, booksellers and publishers.”
• Borrowing not the same as purchase. Small rural
communities, without access to bookshops
cannot get to one to buy the book. So little
impact there. Book borrowing is a good way to
try out an author or genre.
• As for ‘click a button’...

12. Work with libraries
• Libraries let people read your books.
• We reduce instances of piracy
• Libraries introduce people to your books
• We celebrate books and authors everyday, all
year long.
• Archives
• Publicity
• We WANT to buy your books.
• Library users are your best customers.

13. Links
• Pew Report:
– http://libraries.pewinternet.org/2012/06/22/libraries-patrons-and-e-books/
• Overdrive survey link:
– http://www.teleread.com/ebooks/survey-library-borrowers-buy-books-too/?utm_medium=referral&utm_so
• Gaiman quote:
– http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20110211/00384413053/how-neil-gaiman-went-fearing-piracy-
to-believing-its-incredibly-good-thing.shtml
• Work with libraries points from Bobby Newman
– http://librarianbyday.net/2011/11/23/9-reasons-publishers-should-stop-acting-like-libraries-are-
the-enemy-and-start-thanking-them/
• Remote access to ebooks, inspiration from:
– Ian Clark http://infoism.co.uk/