eFrog Press is happy to welcome our new Unknown Reader. As she waits for the delivery of her very first ereader, the Unknown Reader answers a question with an ever-changing answer: who reads ebooks?
My first ereader, a Kindle Paperwhite, will arrive on my doorstep by the end of this month (hopefully). But first I want to know who’s already reading ebooks. Which consumers have beat me to the punch?
Across the Internet, people have discussed—and continue to discuss—the demographics of ebookies (my coinage for readers of ebooks). For the first time in history, in the first quarter of 2012, adult fiction and non-fiction American ebook sales exceeded hardcover sales. Canada isn’t too far behind the same milestone, and US ebook sales are closing in on paperback sales. Although the numbers for all of 2012 aren’t in yet, each year from 2007 to 2011 saw ebook sales more than double. So who’s propelling these ebook sales into competition with print?
Here’s the rundown of readers.