In the book publishing world, what’s old is new again.
Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that bookstore sales rose by 2.5% from $10.89 billion to $11.17 billion in 2015, the first such increase in the industry since 2007.
The figures were reported by Publishers Weekly, which also noted that eBook sales declined in 2015 while print sales went up.
The Association of American Publishers spotted a similar trend during the first three quarters of 2015. From January until September of last year, the AAP reported that eBooks were down 11.1%.
The group said most of the decline came in sales of children or young adult books, which saw a 44.8% decline in eBook sales. Paperback sales grew by 13.3% over the same period, according to the AAP.
“When eBooks first appeared, their growth was exponential,” AAP spokeswoman Marisa Bluestone told CNNMoney. “While there are many who are still discovering e-readers, I don’t think we’ll get back to the levels of triple-digit growth the way we did five years ago. That said, eBooks do have a good market share, and are here to say.”
