April 08, 2004

By: Mary Rodgers
Website: http://www.1st-in-ebooks.com

eBook retailers report over 1 million units already sold in 2003

Retail eBook sales continued their strong growth into the third quarter of 2003 according to data released today by the Open eBook Forum, the eBook industry trade and standards organization (www.openebook.org).

Cumulative units sold for the first three quarters of 2003 (Jan - Sept) have surpassed the one million mark for the first time in a single year and are up 64% over Q3 2002. Revenues reported by retailers for the third quarter of 2003 were up a solid 37% over the same period in 2002. These and other figures charting the eBook industry are reported in the quarterly OeBF eBook Publishing and Retail Statistics Report.

These figures are particularly significant in light of the departure of eBook sales by Gemstar and Barnesandnoble.com, said Nick Bogaty, Executive Director of the OeBF. Double digit growth shows the strength of this industry and eBooks represent one of the fastest growing segments in all of publishing, he added.

Compiled from data submitted by 30 of the world´s leading eBook publishers and retailers, the analysis combines both quantitative and qualitative assessments of the electronic publishing industry. In compiling the data, the OeBF aggregated electronic publishing data from two categories: retailers and publishers. Among the study´s findings are:

Retailers:
Unit Sales: Year to date, retailers reported 1,038,086 units sold. A total of 377,095 eBooks were sold in Q3 2003 alone, a 64% increase over the same period in 2002, during which time 229,990 units were sold.

Revenues: $2,591,469 in sales have been logged by retailers in Q3 2003, a 37% increase over the same period in 2002 during which time retailers reported $1,893,437 on sales of eBooks.

Publishers:
Number of Titles Published: The total number of eBooks published in Q3 2003 was 2,159, a 74% increase over the same period in 2002, during which time 1,241 titles were published.

A more detailed report of the full survey findings and archived reports from 2002 and Q1 and Q2 2003 are available to OeBF Members only and companies who contributed to the reports. Details on OeBF membership can be found at www.openebook.org.

Publishers and retailers that contributed to the 3rd quarter survey are: Biblesoft, Inc., Dell Magazines, Double Dragon Publishing, eBooks.com, Elib AB, E-Reads, Fictionwise Inc., Franklin Electronic Publishers, Hard Shell Word Factory, HarperCollins Publishers, Houghton Mifflin Company, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Laridian, Inc., Logos Research Systems, Inc., Love Kush Publications, Mobipocket.com, Numilog.com, OverDrive, Palm Digital Media, powells.com, RAND Corporation, Random House, Seattle Book Company, Simon & Schuster, St. Martin´s Press, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Time Warner Book Group, University of California Press, WORDsearch Corporation and Zondervan.

The statistical reports released by the OeBF represent aggregate statistics submitted by reporting companies and does not represent the entire eBook publishing and retail industries. Participating companies that report to the program vary quarter by quarter and the report reflects this variability.

The OeBF will collect and release statistics on an ongoing quarterly basis. The next report will contain statistics for Q4 2003. All companies including non-OeBF members are welcome and encouraged to participate in the program. A registration form is located at http://www.openebook.org/statsregistration.asp.

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About The Author:

Mary Rodgers is a successful author and regular contributor to http://www.1st-in-ebooks.com.  A source of information on creating, writing and publishing an e-book.