Understanding EPUB 3.0

The International Digital Publishing Forum(IDPF), a global trade and standards organization for the digital publishing industry, has promoted EPUB 3.0 to a final IDPF Recommended Specification for the interchange and delivery format for eBooks and other digital publications. 

Many of the enhancements to the digital standard will have implications for digital course materials or e-textbooks, so folks in this space should be aware of this development.  Supported by HTML5, EPUB 3 adds rich media (audio, video), interactivity (JavaScript), global language support (including vertical writing), styling and layout enhancements, SVG, embedded fonts, expanded metadata facilities, MathML, and synchronization of audio with text and other enhancements for accessibility.

"EPUB has become the industry standard format for digital publications based on Web Standards that are structured, reliable, device-independent, and accessible," said Bill McCoy, Executive Director, IDPF. "As digital publications evolve from digitized text into enhanced eBooks and new forms of expression, EPUB 3 will dramatically expand the ability of authors and publishers to deliver richer experiences to their readers across disparate devices, in browsers and in apps.

You can learn more about the new format in this article published by O’reilly Media. The article is an easy read and very perceptive even for non-techies. It is a free download from O’Reilly’s website but you must register and check-out as if you were purchasing.

November ebook sales stats

The latest ebook stats are out from IDPF:

According to sales statistics compiled by the Association of American Publishers (AAP), trade eBook wholesale sales from reporting publishers were $46.6M for November 2010, a 129.8% increase over November 2009 ($20.3M), and an increase of 14.5% over the the prior month of October 2010 ($40.7M). Calendar Year to Date sales (11 months) increased 165.3% from $147.9M in 2009 to $392.4M in 2010.

Note that the usual caveats to this data apply -- specifically around the number of publishers contributing data. These numbers are typically seen as a conservative estimate.

Statistics, historical data and information about eBook sales can be viewed at: http://www.idpf.org/doc_library/industrystats.htm (NOTE: the IDPF website is being revamped and this page will not be updated until the new site is launched later this quarter).

September 2010 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for September 2010 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $39.9 million for September 2010, a 158.1% increase over September 2009. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 188%. Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

August 2010 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for August 2010 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $39 million for August 2010, a 172.4% increase over August 2009. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 193%. Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

June 2010 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for June 2010 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $29.8 million for June 2010, a 118.9% increase over June 2009. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 204.2%. IDPF also reports that the sales for Q1 and Q2 of 2010 ($179.7 million) have surpassed the sales for all of 2009 ($169.5 million). Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

May 2010 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for May 2010 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $29.3 million for May 2010, a 162.8% increase over May 2009. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 207.4%. Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

March 2010 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for March 2010 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $28.5 million for March 2010, a 184.8% increase over March 2009. The sales for Q1 2010 totaled $91 million and far surpassed any previous quarter. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 252%. Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

Quote of day -- and Feb 2010 E-book sales stats

A great quote for today from the recent BISG advertisement for their "Making Information Pay 2010" conference in May:

One things for sure: digital change in publishing is inexorable--and the direction is one way. We will not suddenly find the number of bookstores growing or the e-book market shrinking. Explore what happens as digital share grows and printed share shrinks...

In the context of that quote, E-book sales statistics for February 2010 were released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $28.9 million for February 2010, a 339.3% increase over February 2009. Interestingly, the combined sales for January and February 2010 total more than the sales for Q4 2009 which was the previous highest quarter. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 292.2%.

Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF. The numbers are generally believed to underestimate the overall growth and size of the trade e-book market.

January 2010 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for January 2010 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. In January, trade e-book sales were $31.9 million which is the highest single month thus far and a 261.2% increase over January 2009. The January 2010 sales even far surpassed December 2009 sales of 19.1 million which was the previous highest month. Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

December 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for December 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $19.1 million which is the highest single month thus far and a 119.7% increase over December 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 176.2%. IDPF is also reporting that total sales for Q4 of 2009 totaled 55.9 million which is greater than the 2008 total of 53.5 million. Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

November 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for November 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $18.3 million for November 2009, a 199.9% increase over November 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 185.2%. Note: These figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

October 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for October 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. October 2009 trade e-book sales were $18.5 million which is highest single month thus far and a 254.3% increase over October 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 180.7% for the year. Note that these figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

September 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for September 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $15.9 million for September 2009, a 170.1% increase over September 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 176.1% for the year. Note that these figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

August 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for August 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $14.4 million for August 2009, a 189.1% increase over August 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 177.3% for the year. Note that these figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

July 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for July 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $16.2 million for July 2009, a 213.5% increase over July 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 173.9% for the year. Note that these figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

June 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for June 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $14 million for June 2009, a 136.2% increase over June 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 149.3% for the year. Note that these figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

May 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for May 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $11.5 million for May 2009, a 196.6% increase over May 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 166.7% for the year. Note that these figures represent the 12 to 15 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

April 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for April 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $12.1 million for April 2009, a 228.3% increase over April 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 154.8% for the year. Note that these figures represent the 13 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

March 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for March 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $10 million for March 2009, a 110.4% increase over March 2008. IDPF reports calendar year to date revenue is up 131% for the year. Note that these figures represent the 13 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.

January 2009 e-book sales statistics

E-book sales statistics for January 2009 have been released by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) via IDPF. Trade e-book sales were $8.8 million for January 2009, a very significant 173.6% increase over January 2008. Note that these figures represent the 13 trade book publishers who have been willing to supply their data to IDPF.