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The annual e-reader sales boom fuelled by festive buying will double this year, according to Sony.
Talking to PCR, Sony’s category marketing manager Omar Gurnah said that over the last few years the market had recorded sales growth of over 100 per cent during the festive period, but that records are set to be smashed this yuletide.
“In the United States, we’ve seen over 100 per cent sales growth every year since 2007 and it has been the same in the UK since 2008,” stated Gurnah. “This year we are expecting to see a 200 per cent growth. It’s the perfect present, so the Christmas period is always the time when this category sees its biggest sales spike.”
Last Christmas, e-readers were Sony’s largest growth area, with its sales for December 2009 representing four times the value of the same period in the previous year. In fact, sales were so strong that on Christmas Day people who had just unwrapped an e-reader overloaded Sony’s servers.
Gurnah’s predictions are supported by findings from the market analysis firm In-Stat, which predicted that sales of e-readers would triple by the year 2014, going on to suggest that 12 million devices would be sold this year alone, rising to 35 million in three years time.
A number of companies are positioning themselves to take advantage of this annual growth; Sony has recently launched its new Reader models, and Acer will be launching the latest version of its LumiRead device in time for the festive period.
In addition, although Amazon has already released this year’s model of Kindle, the e-tailer is supporting its device with a televised marketing drive in the United States and a billboard campaign here in the UK.
To read a complete overview of the e-reader market, follow this link.
