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As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

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  • As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

    We’ve discussed the potentially big business of eBooks here in the past, and it’s happening even faster than expected.

    Not only have eBook sales tripled in the past year, but the total February sales of digitally formatted books were higher than all of their traditionally paper-formatted counterparts, according to the Association of American Publishers. For the month, and for the first time in history, e-book sales outpaced those of hardcover books, trade paperbacks and mass-market paperbacks.

    That is no small feat. And for those traditionalists afraid of what the rise of eBooks would do for the publishing industry, there’s another equally extraordinary effect occurring.

    “Trade publishing houses cite eBooks as generating fresh consumer interest in – and new revenue streams for – backlist titles,” the AAP reported.

    Backlist titles are books that have been in print for more than a year, and many publishers are reporting that eBook enthusiasts often buy an author’s full backlist after digitally consuming a new release.

    This is uplifting news for authors, publishers and the book publishing industry as a whole, as well as for opportunistic online entrepreneurs.

    For many, the potential within the space has been obvious for several years. But the fact that a once reluctant industry is now widely accepting the medium as a savior rather than a threat greatly enhances the possibilities.

    Alastair

  • #2
    Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

    Hey, Alistair...I have found the same thing, as I am gradually, in a small trickle, selling some "older books" from my own library of books. And I have found, i.e., 1. Usually customers do not have a computer. 2. They are mostly "older" people. 3. They want the old bound books, written by authors not always still alive. 4. These people call me on the phone from my book ads, & they enjoy talking with another book lover, so I often get people who buy more books from me. So far, the oldest that I know of is 92 years old, & still reading!!! Joan P.S. This is not truly a business, as I don't always make anything, but keep on for the enjoyment & the book talk. I have made new friends in this way, as well.
    Last edited by FriedaKateM; 22 April 2011, 20:40. Reason: adding more text.

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    • #3
      Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

      I certainly appreciate actual books but these days when I get an antiquarian one I'll scan it onto the site then usually donate it either to the University of Guelph or Simon Fraser University.

      One thing about the Kindle is that you don't need a computer to read their books. If I remember right the version at $139 comes with Wi-Fi in the USA but the one at $189 comes with 3G so you can download them anywhere there is Internet access.

      I confess I'm starting to prefer the Kindle version of books.

      I also like the fact that authors can make some decent money from Kindle as they don't have production costs and no need to carry stock. They also get to keep 75% of the sale price as long as they price them under $9.99 I believe.

      I do wonder though what will happen to books in the years ahead. Like as the electronic versions are now selling more than the actual books will it only be a generation before no actual books are printed?

      Alastair

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      • #4
        Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

        " I do wonder though what will happen to books in the years ahead. Like as the electronic versions are now selling more than the actual books will it only be a generation before no actual books are printed?

        Alastair "


        I just hope they wait till I fall off my perch before that happens :wink:
        Technology is great but it does take a lot of fun and entertainment out of life, nothing looks better than a coffee table with a scattering of books/magazines that may be scanned at leisure [or as a conversation starter].
        I have yet to see a book/magazine that could not be read if the battery went flat :eek::tongue:,
        Gordon :angelic:

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        • #5
          Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

          I certainly agree with that but the Kindle does have a 30 day battery life and you can plug it in and still read while it's being charged. Not that I'm pushing this method of reading books mind you.

          I did take the Kindle with me when I traveled to Vancouver for a few days and it was certainly a lot easier to carry than a book would have been. I also lost my reading glasses on that trip so if I had taken a book I couldn't have read it. With the Kindle I just had to dial up a larger font size and was able to read it no problem.

          I do think there is room for both. I have suggested to a couple of authors that where you purchase their hardback version they give you a free Kindle edition with it.

          Alastair

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          • #6
            Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

            I think one of the advantages of this new technology is the light weight of the apparatus, a large tome of up to 600+ pages can be quite weighty to read in bed, or indeed to fit into luggage while travelling, my better half has arthritis in her hands so she intends to budget/invest in one of the "New Fangled":wink: devices to avoid exacerbating the condition any further.

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            • #7
              Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

              Saw an article about the Kindle so thought I'd copy it here...

              Amazon announced today that Kindle e-books have outsold traditional print books for the first time in its history. For some time, Kindle ebook sales have outstripped hardback sales and now they have outsold all books altogether.

              "Since April 1, for every 100 print books Amazon.com has sold, it has sold 105 Kindle books. This includes sales of hardcover and paperback books by Amazon where there is no Kindle edition. Free Kindle books are excluded and if included would make the number even higher," Amazon said in a press release.

              "We had high hopes that this would happen eventually, but we never imagined it would happen this quickly - we've been selling print books for 15 years and Kindle books for less than four years," Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said.

              The news from the online shopping giant also throws up some other interesting points about its online book business. Firstly, the Kindle with Special Offers has already become the best-selling Kindle the site sells, despite only having been on the market for five weeks.

              It is therefore clear consumers accept built-in advertising in order to take advantage of the lower $144 price.

              "We continue to receive positive comments from customers on the low $114 price and the money-saving special offers," Bezos said.

              Secondly, Amazon's print sales still continue to grow despite being overtaken by Kindle sales. This increase suggests Amazon's Kindle business has been growing without cutting into the sales of traditional, bound books.

              And there was another article...


              They may be dabbling with apps and paywalls, but most of Blighty's national newspapers and lifestyle magazines lack dedicated mobile sites.

              According to Brand Republic, less than half of 93 national newspapers and lifestyle publications have a mobile-optimised website, even though a third of British titles have an iPhone app.

              And it seems some British publishers are more geared for mobile than others, as Brand Republic reported only seven of 25 national daily and Sunday newspapers have a mobile website (28 per cent) compared to 36 of 61 lifestyle magazines (60 per cent).

              But the news makes for particularly interesting reading given The New York Times has reported that mobile sites and apps are big news for lifestyle publishers stateside.

              According to the NYT, the Barnes & Noble Nook Color e-reader has surprised publishers across the pond by raking in sales of women's magazines and fashion weeklies that rival - if not better - comparative iPad sales.

              In fact, analysts told the NYT that mobile women's publications - and lifestyle magazines in particular - could prove increasingly profitable, especially as women are more likely to own e-readers and purchase titles frequently than their male counterparts.

              Over 1.5 million women's lifestyle magazine subscriptions and single-issue copies have been sold to Nook users since November - a figure expected to rival sales made through Apple's iPad and Amazon's Kindle.

              Rodale publishing told the newspaper it garnered five times the number of paid subscriptions on the Nook than seen in single-issue iPad sales.

              Publishers also told the NYT that female audiences weren't too impressed with the bells and whistles of tablet and e-reader publications. While male audiences are more likely to appreciate animation, live video and audio, female readers tend to be more responsive to "a straightforward version of their favourite magazine where the benefit is portability."

              Alastair

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              • #8
                Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

                I find ebooks great for travelling. I go to Mexico every year for two weeks and used to carry as much weight in books as I did in clothes. Now I just load up the Kindle and go. At home however, I want a real book. I want to feel it, smell it and not worry about dropping it. Guess I'm just old fashioned.
                Never pick a fight with an old Highlander. If he can't fight, he will just kill you.

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                • #9
                  Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

                  Hey All,
                  I do agree with everyone's views, however, when my husband wanted to buy me a Kindle as I read so much, I didn't want one. I agree with Gordon and Steve. There is just something about reading an actual book. Curling up with a good book is the greatest feeling and I don't think that curling up with a Kindle would be the same. I could be wrong, but I don't want to find out. Also, the question Alastair posed regarding the eventual decline of the printing of books is real. That would be tragic. Would like to know if you have to pay for each book downloaded on Kindle. I go to the library and that is free.

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                  • #10
                    Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

                    Kindle is just like a book store so you do have to purchase books. However the Kindle editions are usually a bit cheaper than the print versions.

                    I was of the opinion that I preferred books to a Kindle version but have to say that i now prefer the Kindle version better. I've just read a new hardback book and found the binding was too tight so had to continually bend it to be able to read the inside of the text. Also some books have quite faint text making it harder to read. With Kindle when you finish reading you hit the "Home" button and then switch it off. When you power up the Kindle again and select the book you were reading (which is always the top of the list) it goes right back to the page where you finished reading. It's also lighter than an actual book. Also if you use reading glasses then you can just up the font size meaning you don't need your reading glasses.

                    I'm hooked as you can likely tell. I do note the latest version of the Kindle is now in full colour and you can now play videos and music on them.

                    Alastair

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                    • #11
                      Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

                      When it comes to reading (my critics may suggest in other areas also), I am a dinosaur. I don't think I'll ever give up books. Prior to E-books well meaning friends would give me audio books from time to time... they were a passive exercise and the experience was missing something...

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                      • #12
                        Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

                        HI, Tom....I am also a "dinosaur" as you stated above. Also, though have tried listening to audio books, I usually fall at the wayside, due to my just sitting there, without the tactile feeling of being in charge of my own "reading".

                        As a child, I used to listen to the radio, but that's all we had at the time. I remember listening to The Great Gildersleeve, and Fibber McGee & Mollie, but have changed since I actually learned how to read. I also remember sitting in the "reading" class at grade school, being totally bored, as I'd read the entire book, while someone else, who was reading out loud, could barely read the book. Reading has been my friend for many years!!! And I'm all for it. One will not find some of the old, antique type books online for sale for Kindle, etc. Joan

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                        • #13
                          Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

                          I've read since I was five. It was always an interactive experience between me and the page. After a few pages the words would blur and I would watch a movie in my head. You can't do that with an e-machine or an audio tape.

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                          • #14
                            Re: As eBook Sales Grow, So Do Online Opportunities

                            i would only say that books can not be substituted by making them online to read they must surely be as they are3 in original form. i just hate reading books on internet
                            click this link now - > http://pressreleaseblog.org/prweb-co...tion-code.html

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