1. Read reports and surveys of research organizations.
Check out these reports from Pew Research
- A Snapshot of E-Reader and Tablet Owners, January 2012
- The rise of e-reading, April 2012
- Younger Americans' Reading and Library Habits, October 2012
Here's a Harris Poll of 2,056 adults: No Surprise, eReader Use Continues to Grow.
If you're really serious about knowing about the status of the ereader industry, you can fork over $4500.00 (!) for International Data Corporation's Worldwide and U. S. eReader 2012-2016 Forecast which covers statistics for Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo Inc., Pandigital Inc., and Sony.
If you want to pay less ($635.00) check out the eBooks and eReaders: 2012 report by Research and Markets.
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2. Look for infographics on the subject.
Here are a couple of infographics for your review, courtesy of The Digital Reader:
(It would be interesting to know more about the demographics of this survey conducted by spectos.com.)
This infographic uses data from Pew, businesstocommunity.com and Gizmodo.
Pinterest is the mother lode of infographics, of course. Here's my favorite board:
Ben Macklin's ebook and ereader stats and charts
(53 pins as of this writing)
As with all infographics, be sure to read the fine print at the bottom to determine the authoritativeness of the data source(s).
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3. Monitor up-to-the-minute developments and trends via blogs and Twitter.
I recommend adding these sites/blogs to your reader (I use Google Reader);
Pew Internet Libraries
Publishers Weekly's digital content and ebooks section
The Digital Reader
ereadingtrends
Digital Book World
Personanondata
Publishing Trends
The digital publishing section of goodereader.com
Publishing Perspectives
If you're a Twitter user, I've created a short Digital Publishing list. I invite you to subscribe.
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4. If you're interested in how ereading affects libraries, follow these three great resources.No Shelf Required
eBooks, eReaders, and Libraries on scoop.it, curated by Buffy J. Hamilton
The Digital Shift (Library Journal, School Library Journal)
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And there you have it, four ways to keep up with what's happening with ereaders! This is by no means a comprehensive list. Please comment below if you have suggestions.To my dear author friend who asked me to do some investigative work on ereaders, I hope this helps! The state of the digital publishing industry is a subject in which I'm keenly interested. I learned a lot writing this article!
Happy reading!
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@castlelibrary
(Cross-posted in my mauilibrarian2 in Olinda blog)
