Global eBook 2015. A report on market trends and developments.

This report provides an overview of internationally evolving ebook markets, with a unique set of data from a wide array of the best available sources, a thorough analysis and a synopsis of key global developments, and a broad set of detailed references to both global and local actors, forming a resource for anyone interested in the globalization of digital (book) content production and dissemination. The 2015 edition of the Global eBook report, which has not only updated previous versions, but is re-written entirely, particularly emphasizes how digital developments are embedded in the overall evolution of publishing markets, by providing context data as well as historical statistics to spot trends and developments over the past 3 to 5 years. Main driving forces and policy as well as legal debates shaping the current transformation of the international book business are identified and looked at in country and market comparisons. Traditional actors (such as publishing groups, or retail chains) as well as new players and business models (such as subscription services, but also changing piracy platforms) are portrayed in their individual characteristics and ambitions, and analyzed in context. The findings of the Global eBook report allow us to assess, on the one hand, how the main drivers of digital change in the publishing industry impact on international markets in similar ways, as reading platforms and distribution infrastructures become available, and as publishers in all markets start to make their title catalogs available in digital formats. On the other hand, a wide array of local factors—from market size through tax and pricing regimes to cultural choices—show that each market must be presented with its unique defining traits. The Global eBook report 2015 consists of 4 main sections Publishing - print and digital - in the global context: • Book publishing by key statistics in comparison to other media industries (e.g. music, filmed entertainment, games); • The largest book publishing markets, plus an analysis by sector (trade, educational and STM); • A close up on declining print markets, and to what extend digital can compensate for the physical loss; • The market share of ebooks (by revenue) in a comparison of North American and European markets, and of the 5 largest publishing groups; • A documentation and analysis of consolidation in the publishing industry Market close ups, detailing key figures and key developments: • English language markets (US, UK); • Selected European markets, notably Germany, Austria, France, (Wallonian) Belgium, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, and an overview on Central and Eastern Europe; • Emerging markets, notably Brasil, China, India, Russia, plus a summary on publishing trends in Hispanic Latin America; Thematic chapters on key drivers and debates shaping the ebook markets: • The expansion of global platforms, notably detailing developments at Amazon, Apple, and Kobo/Rakuten; • An analysis of contradictory pricing strategies for ebooks across European markets, with data on historical trends and patterns with regard to retail prices for digital editions; • An overview of self-publishing trends, by production data and platforms, and the share of self-published titles in selected markets, plus a summary of the debate on author earnings; • An overview on subscription services, portraying a selection of the most prevalent platforms, and a comparison of key parameters; • A comparative analysis of ebook piracy, by key parameters, in four European markets (Germany, France, Spain, Italy), and an analysis of antipiracy strategies; • A summary of the debate around DRM, with case studies for selected policies and approaches; Global eBook Yellow Pages: • A listing of over 350 companies dedicated to ebooks, notably publishers, service organisations, distributors and aggregators, with short company descriptions and links. An index and cross references facilitate to tracking players and topics across various chapters of the report. Extensive references to key industry sources provide direct access and links for further reading. We strongly encourage critical feedback and -even more enthusiastically- the input of information and data to improve the foundations of this analysis