Consumer books: slow transformation


20 August 2014

The appearance of mass market consumer eBooks was delayed, evolved explosively, and has since plateaued more quickly than other media. Physical books are attractive objects and elegant devices compared to CDs and DVDs.

Furthermore, “all you can eat” is not a reader’s mindset, limiting the relevance and growth of mass market eBook subscription services.

Amazon’s mission is to grow market share, and strategic initiatives to move up the supply chain into publishing do not address its core issue: digital provides a poor discovery solution for dedicated book lovers, hence the continued necessity of retailers for publishers.

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