In May, Amazon.com announced ebook sales now exceed those of printed book sales in the U.S.
The amount of paper used to make books, magazines and newspapers is in steep decline because of the rapid adoption of media tablets like Apple’s iPad and Amazon’s Kindle.
Media tablets are on expected to become ubiquitous, and at a faster rate than any other new technological device, concludes a study by RISI, a market research provider for the global forest products industry.
15 million tablets were bought during its first year on the market. The size of the electronic reader market almost doubled in North America alone, with over 10 million in use.
By 2015, paper used for publishing in North America – such as magazine, newspaper and book publishing – will be down 12%-21% compared to their 2010 levels. This is on top of the massive collapse that occurred during the recent recession.
42% of US tablet owners will cancel their print newspaper subscriptions, contributing to another 40%-50% decline over the next 15 years in the amount of print paper used in North America, according to a Morgan Stanley analysis.
Market declines are also anticipated in Europe, especially for print newspapers, but to a lesser extent. Tablets are being adopted as quickly there and media markets are also more fragmented.
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