E-Reading Could Soon Replace Paper Reading: Pew Research

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E-reading is apparently replacing ordinary book reading according to a survey from Pew Internet Research Center. The survey was released today, and it showed that 23 percent of Americans 16 and older read an e-book this year. That’s compared to only 16 percent last year.

E-Reading Could Soon Replace Paper Reading: Pew Research

Traditional reading decreased to 67 percent from 72 percent last year, while the number of people who were reading any books at all fell to 75 percent, down from 78 percent. However Pew said that decrease was insignificant.

Another major e-reading milestone for 2012 was the increase in the number of those owning either a tablet or an e-book device. This year 33 percent of Americans owned at least one of the two gadgets, while last year only 18 percent did. Analysts believe a lot of that increase came from the holiday season last year when e-reading devices and tablets were given as gifts.

Pew also found that 31 percent of Americans were aware that they could borrow digital books from their library, compared to only 24 percent last year. The survey also showed that the most active e-reading group was 30 to 49 years old and earned at least $75,000 per year. They also tended to have a college degree.

These numbers show us that e-reading is likely to continue growing in the next few years. We could see a significant increase next year due to this year’s holiday season and tablets or e-reading devices that were given as gifts once again.

The survey was conducted via telephone between the middle of October and the early part of November.

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