AAP eBook Sales Dip Further in October
Reported in the 23 Dec 2011 Publishers Lunch newsletter:
“The AAP announced their tabulation of sales for October from reporting publishers. In the closely watched eBook sales category–where the AAP’s monthly number is the only standing statistic we have to go on, the now 20 reporting publishers recorded sales of $72.8 million, down from $80.3 million in August. It’s the lowest monthly eBook total recorded since April, and lower as an absolute comparison since the matching results that month came from just 14 publishers.
Seasonably sizable shipments of print books and flat month-to-month eBook sales trends left digital books in fourth place, trailing hardcover and trade paperback adult sales as well as hardcover children’s books. eBooks comprised just 12.6 percent of all recorded trade sales. (As a reminder, the AAP counts religious sales as trade; we do not in calculating our percentages, in part because their “religious” category includes both print and eBook sales.)
Once again, the gain in eBook sales compared to a year ago (up $32.6 million) could not overcome the decline in print sales, with the monthly trade sales total for October of $577.6 million down almost 10 percent from $639.5 million a year ago.”
