Market Overview

"I always order the banned books from a black market dealer in California, figuring if the State of Mississippi banned them, they must be good." — Kathryn Stockett (The Help)

The global book publishing industry is valued at $133 bn, and the eBook market generated $18.13 bn in revenues last year and is expected to cross $23 bn by 2026. While in the last five years eBook segment has seen a CAGR of 4.5%, the dynamics of the overall book industry have not changed much.

Publishers and authors lose revenue because of piracy and high commissions charged by the e-book marketplaces. Kanter Media estimated that about 17% of e-books read online are pirated, and in the USA the loss of sales from e-book piracy was $315 mn. Not only piracy, but the revenue stream is also very narrow, and commissions charged by online platforms for selling eBooks are very high.