Some good news for the beleaguered publishing sector. According to reports, the motives are different, but people are buying books, especially in continental Europe, says an NYT article.
André Breedt, research and development analyst at Nielsen BookScan, which tracks book sales says, “People have been reading and they will keep reading, no matter what happens.”
That resilience has been particularly evident in Continental Europe. After a dip in the fall, the number of books sold in France rose 2 per cent in December from a year earlier and 2.4 per cent in January, according to Livres Hebdo, a trade publication.
Publishers and analysts offer a variety of reasons for the relative strength of the book market. Compared with a new television or video game console, books are inexpensive. With unemployment on the rise and working hours in decline, people may simply have more time on their hands. After the excesses of recent years, reading is an activity well suited to a more contemplative era.
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