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The study Turning the page. The future of eBooks examines the trends that the electronic books and readers market is following in the United States, United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany and discusses the main challenges and key issues that publishing industry has to face worldwide. It also considers the opportunities for digital distribution of newspapers and magazines through electronic tablets such as the iPad, and looks at consumers’ attitudes towards digital reading wondering whether the latest versions and prototypes of electronic reading devices will get lure them away from paper and ink in a massive way.
PricewaterhouseCoopers has carried out an investigation that includes:
· A market analysis
· A survey conducted among 1,000 online users in each country
· More than 40 interviews with eReader manufacturers, publishers, booksellers and librarians in Germany.
The methodology has the advantage of contrasting views of industry experts and users. The study predicts that the evolution to digital is irreversible even though the printed books will still represent the largest percentage of sales in the coming years. Among other things, it points out the following short-term forecast:
· Technical improvements will result in tablets lighter and with longer battery life than today’s models.
· Prices for eReaders will fall, and color screens and Internet connectivity will become commonplace.
· More publishers will offer multimedia content in eBooks.
· Special interest books will be sold on a chapter-by-chapter basis.
Please check here the full report. |
