Everybody loves the bearer of good tidings, and Michael Smith, head of International Digital Publishing Forum, is due for another fuerte abrazo thanks to his tidings of another record-setting month and quarter for e-books. Trade eBook sales were $14,000,000 for June, more than double last June’s $5,900,000. in fact June was the biggest e-book month ever; the prior record setter was April ‘09 at $12,100,000.

Second quarter wholesale trade sales reached $37,600,000, exceeding by about one third the $25,800,000 reported for the first quarter of this year.

As we’ve stated before, the true sales numbers may be even higher than the above chart indicates. Smith reminds us that:

The true sales numbers may be even higher than the above chart indicates. Michael Smith, Executive Director of IDPF (International Digital Publishing Forum) reminds us that:

• This data represents United States revenues only
• This data represents only trade eBook sales via wholesale channels. Retail numbers may be as much as double the above figures due to industry wholesale discounts.
• This data represents only data submitted from approx. 12 to 15 trade publishers
• This data does not include library, educational or professional electronic sales
• The numbers reflect the wholesale revenues of publishers
• The definition used for reporting electronic book sales is “All books delivered electronically over the Internet OR to hand-held reading devices”
• The IDPF and AAP began collecting data together starting in Q1 2006

RC