Publisher book sales were down 5.8 percent from January through May 2015, according to the the Association of American Publishers (AAP)’s latest StatShot. The report revealed that sales this year reached $4 billion compared to $4.3 billion for the same five months last year.
The research includes stats from more than 1,200 publishers. Here is more from the press release:
Trade Books declined 3.4%, falling to 2.56 billion from 2.65 billion compared to Jan. – May 2014. Adult, Children/Young Adult and Religious Presses were each down in May 2015, compared to May 2014. Despite the weak sales in May for Adult Books was up 1.5% year-to-date.
By format, paperback sales were up 8.4 percent during the period, and downloaded audio was up an impressive 38 percent. However, hardcover books dropped 11.6 percent and e-books were down 10.2 percent.