That said, a note of caution. In a possibly worrying development, the KU pot payout has declined each month for the last four months, after peaking at $60 million for August.
There are only three certainties in life: death, taxes and the January TNPS round up of the real numbers for ebooks that the industry collectively prefers to keep in the shade.
There are only three certainties in life: death, taxes and the January TNPS round up of the real numbers for ebooks that the industry collectively prefers to keep in the shade.
2024 was another record-breaker for both OverDrive and Kindle Unlimited.
That said, a note of caution. In a possibly worrying development, the KU pot payout has declined each month for the last four months, after peaking at $60 million for August.
Let’s start with digital library lending of ebooks (these figures are mostly but not exclusively USA). Using OverDrive’s Libby and Sora apps, readers borrowed over 739 million ebooks, audiobooks, and digital magazines in 2024, a 17% increase over 2023.
Ebooks In Decline? Seven Percent Up, Actually
Contrary to the popular narrative that ebooks are in decline, digital lending records paint a different picture. With 366.2 million ebooks borrowed in 2024, the format saw a 7% increase over the previous year. This surge highlights the growing preference for digital reading among library patrons.
A record 192 library systems, consortia, and school libraries surpassed one million digital checkouts, with Los Angeles Public Library leading the pack. Over 30 library systems and consortia reached this milestone for the first time in 2024, earning them a spot in Libby’s Million Checkout Club.
Milestones for Libby and Kanopy
2024 marked additional significant milestones for the Libby app and the streaming app Kanopy. More than 9.1 million people installed the Libby app, and over 118.9 million new users joined library systems globally, signalling the continued expansion of digital library services. In 2024, Kanopy’s total streaming minutes surpassed 950 million, an 18% increase over the previous year.
While audio saw the second biggest increase, after magazines, ebook downloads still outnumbered audiobook downloads by 87.9 million.
2024 Digital Lending Records
- Total digital checkouts from libraries and schools: 739.5 million (+17% YoY)
- Ebooks borrowed: 366.2 million (+7%)
- Audiobooks borrowed: 278.3 million (+19%)
- Magazines borrowed: 95.1 million (+70%)
- Comics borrowed: 44.8 million (+20%)
- Children and Young Adult titles borrowed: 157.8 million (+14%)
- Public library checkouts: 706.3 million (+17%)
- School checkouts: 56.2 million (+15%)
- Libby installs: 9.2 million (+1%)
- New library users: 118.9 million (+16%)
The data underscores the rising popularity of digital formats, with ebooks at the forefront, a trend particularly noteworthy in light of the ongoing debate about the future of digital reading. The remarkable growth in digital lending and the increasing number of new library users highlight the resilience and adaptability of libraries in the digital age.
The success of 2024’s digital lending initiatives demonstrates a robust demand for accessible and convenient reading options, challenging the notion that ebooks are losing their appeal and that consumers only want print.
And it’s no one-off aberration. OverDrive has been setting new records year after year. This from 2024:
Kindle Unlimited Breaks Records Again
Since that post mentioned Kindle Unlimited, a reminder that my projection for Kindle Unlimited’s 2024 payout, made in August 2024, was $635 million.
I’m delighted to report the KU pot payout exceeded my projection, coming in a full ten million downloads ahead, at $645.6 million.
Only Part of the Picture
A reminder too that this payout is only to self-publishers and small presses loading to Kindle Unlimited through KDP. Bigger publishers in KU, along with JK Rowling and co, get paid as if a la carte sales, as do APub authors, so this KU payout represents only a part of the total Amazon ebook subscription payout over the year. The total untracked (by the AAP) ebook payout from Amazon including all a la carte sales from all publishers is unknown but clearly way beyond what Markus Dohle and the Ebook Luddite League would have us believe.
Caution! KU May Have Plateaued
That said, a note of caution. In a possibly worrying development, the KU pot payout has declined each month for the last four months, after peaking at $60 million for August.
January usually sees a Christmas boost, then a slip back in February, then a slow but steady rise.
Too soon to know if that pattern will be repeated in 2025, or if we have seen Kindle Unlimited reach its limits.
But either way we are talking over $50 million a month in ebook cash ignored by the stats counters, that show ebooks are still extremely popular.
Is AI To Blame?
As for the decline… Pure guesswork, but I suspect the flood of scam AI titles may be taking its toll on reader patience. A safe bet 90% of scam AI titles go into KU.
None of which should be taken as a criticism of AI. AI is a tool that can be used or abused.
AI-assisted titles have every right to be sold on Amazon, just as self-published titles have every right to be sold on Amazon. In both cases, Amazon needs to take responsibility for letting scam AI titles through alongside the bona fide AI-assisted titles.
This post first appeared in the TNPS LinkedIn newsletter.
